The Desert King and his Dragon Queen
by Ariel.611
Summary: Sequel to Moving Towards Tomorrow. Onchou and Ryuu have been appointed official citizens of Suna following Takuma's defeat. They settle into life living with Onchou's father but things aren't going as smoothly as they'd hoped. Will they learn to fit in? Will Gaara and Onchou's relationship flourish with the mad scientist no longer looming over them? GaaraxOC
1. Chapter 1

Onchou stood on the roof of the Kazekage's building her eyes cast towards the entrance of Suna. A gust of hot, dry, desert air whipped past her tossing her violet hair and a little smile touched her lips. "He's nearly home." She murmured. A voice calling her name caught her attention and she turned to see Ryuu standing behind her. "Hey there." She said smiling at him as he rushed up to her and wrapped his arms around her. "How are you doing?" she asked.

"Good." He replied. "Nami said I could eat lunch with you today."

Onchou smiled. "Very well then. Let's go home and see what lunch is." She said bending down so that the silver child could scramble onto her back. "Hold on tight." She reminded him before she took off across the roof tops towards the place she now called home. She landed in front of the building and pushed the door open.

"Father! Ryuu and I are home for lunch." She called out.

Tamiki walked out and smiled at her. "Ryuu gets to join us? What a treat." He said with a smile as he set out their food. "I take it your training is going well?"

The silver haired child nodded as he ate his sandwich. "Yes. I'm one of the only water users in my class and no one else can make ice either."

Onchou chuckled. "Actually, making ice is a very unique ability." She said ruffling his silver hair. "I can't even do that."

Ryuu smiled a little blush coming to his cheeks. "Oh yeah. I almost forgot." He said with a smile. "So is raccoon eyes coming back home today?" he asked. "I've only seen him twice since we got rid of Takuma."

The violet haired girl sighed. "You really shouldn't call him raccoon eyes." She chastised. "He should be home very soon though."

"What should I call him?" he asked.

"Lord Gaara or Lord Kazekage." Tamiki replied.

"Onchou doesn't. She calls him Gaara. How come?" he asked his eyes narrowing slightly.

The violet haired girl blushed. "He asked me to call him that." She replied quickly before becoming engrossed in her own food.

"Why did he have to leave?" Ryuu asked.

"He disbanded the council." Tamiki replied. "Of course that worried the dynamo so he called a meeting to discuss things."

"Uh oh. Does that mean raccoon eyes is going to lose his job?" The silver haired boy asked.

The older shinobi chuckled and shook his head. "I doubt that. Gaara is by far the most qualified person for the position. The only people that didn't like him were the old embittered council members."

Onchou bowed her head. "This is all my fault." She muttered.

"Don't be like that." Her father assured her. "He really should've done it after they abandoned him four years ago but he wanted to keep the peace and decided not to. Their days were numbered anyway."

The violet haired girl shrugged as she and Ryuu rose from the table. "I'll take you back to the academy." She said as she cleared their dishes.

"What will you do after that?" Tamiki asked.

The amethyst eyed girl glanced at her father. "I'm going to do some training." She replied as she raised her hand and touched the center of her chest. "Learning to adjust to this power within me has been difficult." She admitted.

The older shinobi nodded. "I can only imagine." He replied before his eyes narrowed slightly. "You aren't doubting him are you?" he asked.

She shook her head. "No it's nothing like that it's just…" she thought about all of the girls who claimed to be madly in love with the Kazekage. "I feel a little inadequate is all." She muttered.

"We're going to be late." Ryuu reminded her.

"Alright. I'm coming." She replied. "I'll see you later father." He nodded and waved as she dashed out the door.

"Silly girl." Tamiki muttered. "The Kazekage only has eyes for you."

#*#

"Is that really her?" a girl's voice whispered.

"They call her the Dragon Queen." Another one replied.

"What a show off!" the first voice repeated.

Onchou sighed and closed her eyes as she concentrated her lightning chakra letting it charge the air around her before she shifted her foot and tripped the traps rigged around the grounds. Kunai flew from the holes in the walls and she leapt into the air and pushed with her chakra knocking the blades off course. She landed and then back flipped as shuriken flew at her and she pushed with her wind chakra deflecting them from their path and landed lithely back where she started. She opened her eyes and sighed. "I'm still using too much." She muttered as she picked up a kunai flinching at how hot it still was.

"She's so hot!" one of the young men exclaimed.

"I'd hit that!" another whispered.

Irritation flowed through her at their words but she ignored it and instead gathered up the weaponry and put them away in the designated baskets so that the traps could be reloaded.

"Kyaa!" a pair of the girl's screamed. "Lord Gaara's back!"

"Let's hurry and go see him!" the first one squealed.

"Yeah before the Dragon Queen gets her claws into him. I mean who does she think she is?" the second one spat.

Onchou's head hung slightly. In her life, she'd never really been around other girl's much, let along girls her own age. She'd hoped that living in a village would give her the opportunity to connect and bond with some but quickly found that most of them were either jealous of her abilities and closeness to The Konoha twelve and their precious Kazekage or straight up afraid of her. Her head lifted to the wind as she heard Gaara's soul song smiling at the sound before it faded. "I've caused him enough trouble." She thought to herself. "If he wants to see me, he knows where I am."

&#&

Gaara sighed as he entered the village of Suna with Kankuro by his side and nearly flinched at the screams as females from his village flocked to see him.

"Lord Gaara! How was your trip?" one exclaimed.

"Lord Gaara we missed you!" another one screamed.

"I miss Temari." Kankuro muttered as he struggled to push some of the more eager girl's back. "She could manhandle them and get away with it. I can't."

Gaara nodded and scanned the crowd looking for a flash of violet hair, or amethyst eyes. He frowned slightly when he didn't catch a glimpse of either.

"Looking for Onchou?" Kankuro asked as they neared the office building.

The red head shinobi nodded. "I've been worried about her." He admitted. "I had to leave so soon after the whole episode with Takuma."

"I can send someone to get her for you if you'd like." His brother offered.

Gaara thought for a moment and then turned as he heard someone call out to him. "Raccoon eyes! You're back! Onchou was right." Ryuu exclaimed jogging up to him flanked by Nami the blonde shinobi who had assigned herself to look after the silver haired child during his time at the academy.

"Ryuu. It's good to see you." The Kazekage said touching the child on his head. "Where is Onchou?"

The silver haired child shrugged. "I'm not sure. She said she's been having trouble adjusting and she was going to train."

The Kazekage nodded. "Very good." He murmured. "How are you doing at the academy? Are you doing well?"

The ruby eyed boy smiled and nodded. "Yes but I'm the smallest one in my class." He muttered.

"Don't worry about that." Kankuro said cheerfully. "Gaara was the smallest in his class too."

The silver haired boy cocked an eyebrow and then smiled. "Well, I guess it's ok then." He murmured.

Gaara nodded. "When you see Onchou again will you let her know that I'll come to see her as soon as I can?"

The child nodded. "Sure thing! See you Raccoon eyes!" he said as he jogged away.

Gaara and Kankuro smiled at the child before they continued their walk to the Kazekage's building. "We have a lot of work to do." Kankuro said as they entered his brother's office. "Assembling a new council will be a challenge."

The red haired shinobi nodded as he sat down in his chair and pulled out the roster of shinobi in the village. "It will but it is necessary for our village to move forward in a positive manner." He remarked.

Onchou sighed as she slipped her cloak over her shoulders as she finished up her training session. "It's later than I thought." She muttered as she looked up at the indigo sky. With quick strides, she walked across the training field and sighed as she heard a male soul song nearby.

"Hey there. You're the Dragon Queen right?" a man in his late twenties said from where he stood leaning against the gate that led out of the training grounds.

"That's not my name." she replied stiffly. "That's a label someone attached to me. Please let me pass."

"It's a touchy subject. I get it." The man replied putting his hands up. "I didn't mean to offend you. I just wanted to talk to you. I've been watching you and you're skill is impressive."

Knowing exactly where the conversation was going she leapt into the air and front flipped over the man and landed lithely behind him. "If you've been watching me, then you know that I'm late returning home." She replied walking up the stairs.

"Don't be like that." The young man protested jogging up behind her. "You're the prettiest girl in Suna you know." He murmured reaching out to touch her hair.

"Don't touch me." She replied as she leapt to the top of the stairs.

He chuckled as she entered the streets and walked quickly towards the home she shared with her father and Ryuu her teeth gritting as he followed her faster. "I just want to talk." He assured her.

"Liar." She snarled.

"What?" he asked confused.

"You're a liar." She repeated.

"What are you talking about?" he asked reaching for her. "I just want to talk really."

She whirled around. "I'm not as stupid as you think." She hissed glaring at the handsome man. "I know exactly what you're intentions with me are. Your grandfather was on the council that was disbanded and he blames me and Lord Gaara for it. He wants you to seduce me and then use that to get back at Lord Gaara."

The man's eyes widened. "How did you…" he suddenly glanced around noticing the curious eyes on them and laughed. "You're so funny!" he exclaimed nervously. "Come on let's go talk somewhere more private." He said reaching for her arm. Her brow furrowed as she prepared to defend herself when she felt a brush of chakra that felt like gritty but warm wind against her consciousness.

"Onchou. Where are you?" Came Gaara's voice in her head. She instinctively opened the soul link and sensed the Kazekage's concern as she dodged the man's attempt to grab her arm.

"I really just want to talk." The man assured her. "Please come with me. You don't want to make a scene." He said stepping closer to her and lowering his voice so that only she could hear. "You're still an outsider here." He whispered. "If anything happens they'll believe me over you." Her eyes widened at his words and he took his chance wrapping his hand around her arm. "I've got you now." He hissed.

"Onchou, I've been looking for you." Came a low deliberate voice from behind the man.

The man's eyes widened and sweat immediately formed on his brow and slid down his face. "Lord Kazekage." He murmured. The amethyst eyed girl quickly pulled her arm from his grip and stepped around him.

"Lord Kazekage." She said walking up to him and bowing. "I'm sorry to trouble you. I lost track of time while I was training."

The red head shinobi's brow furrowed slightly at the formalness of her speech until he realized that she was shaking her eyes darting back to the man who had been holding onto her arm when he arrived.

"That's quite alright." He assured her. "Will you come with me for a bit?"

"Of course." She replied with a slightly forced smile.

He nodded and led her down the street at a brisk his eyes narrowing slightly. Instead of taking her home as she'd expected, he walked with her to the Kazekage's residence and let them both inside.

"Gaara?" she questioned him. "Why didn't you take me home?" she asked.

"He was following us." He replied.

The violet haired girl nodded. "Yeah…"

"I don't want him to know where you live." He explained.

"I can defend myself just fine." She said crossing her arms over her chest.

"That may be true but avoiding the conflict all together is best." he replied. "Please come into the kitchen. I really did want to talk to you."

"Ok." She replied slipping her cloak from her shoulders and hanging it on a peg on the wall before following the Kazekage into the kitchen.

Kankuro glanced up as they walked inside and smiled. "Hey Onchou." He said with a smile. "It's good to see you. How have you been?" he asked.

"Alright." She replied. "How did your trip go?"

The puppeteer sighed. "As well as it could have I suppose. Assembling a new council is going to be troublesome."

"I'm sorry. This is all my fault." She murmured.

"Don't say stuff like that." Kuro argued standing up and walking to the fridge. "I'd been praying for that day for ages."

"If you say so." She replied. The sand shinobi smiled and then pulled out a small cake on a plate and handed it to her.

"This is for you." He said. "Just think of it as just a tiny way to say thank you for helping out with that mess with Takuma and saving Gaara."

"Oh. You didn't have to." She replied looking at the pastry with wide eyes.

"Don't worry about it." Kankuro replied as he handed her a fork and motioned for her to sit down at the table. "It would just go to waste here. Temari was the only one of three of us to like sweets."

"I see. It's sweet then." Onchou murmured.

"What do you mean by that?" Kuro asked. "It's cake. Of course it's sweet."

"I've never had cake before." She admitted.

The sand shinobi's eyes widened at her words. "Seriously!?" Kankuro gasped. "How old are you again?"

"Sixteen." She replied quickly.

"How have you not had cake!?" he demanded dumfounded.

She blushed. "Well, in Heiwa even though I was a member of the village head's family and we received things like this, my mother seemed to like it so much I always let her have mine. It was the same way when we were moving around too." She looked down tucking her hair behind her ear as she studied the confection. "Takuma never gave me anything sweet even when we were out on missions and after I ran away with Ryuu the opportunity just never presented itself." She admitted.

"Remarkable." Gaara murmured his eyes softening as he looked at her.

"What's that supposed to mean?" she asked blushing under his gaze.

"Just go ahead and try it." Kankuro encouraged.

She nodded and carefully took a forkful and slipped it into her mouth. Her eyes widened as she chewed and then swallowed her hand lifting to cover her mouth. "It's so sweet!" she exclaimed a smile touching her lips before she took another bite. "I like it." She admitted as she grinned. "Thank you so much!"

"No. I should be thanking you." Kankuro murmured. "I now know what pure joy looks like. It looks like a sixteen year old girl eating cake for the first time." He glanced at his younger brother who was watching her carefully his lips turned up into a little smile as he watched her enjoy the sweet treat. "I'm going to head to bed. When you two are finished, see her safely home Gaara." He instructed.

"You don't have to tell me that." The red head replied.

Kankuro chuckled and then left the room Gaara sat down across from her. "How have you been doing?" he asked her.

"Alright." She replied. "It's been a bit hard learning to adjust." She admitted. "I don't seem to fit in very well." She admitted.

He sighed. "I understand. It'll take time."

She nodded and finished the plate and licked the extra frosting from her lips and then her fingers. The Kazekage felt his heart stumble in his chest as a large part of him wished he'd been the one to lick the sticky substance away. He blinked and shook his head to clear his mind and focused on her again. "So how did your meetings go?" she asked him.

He sighed. "Better than I anticipated. It seems I wasn't the only one fed up with the council's recent behavior."

A sigh of relief escaped her lips as some of the tension in her body visibly vanished. "Thank goodness. I was worried you'd lost your position because of me." She admitted.

He looked at her and then reached out to touch a section of her hair letting it slide between his fingers. "Remember what I told you?" he murmured. "I told you that I'd gladly give up title to protect you."

She blushed and nodded. "Thank you Gaara." She murmured.

"So why was that man following you?" he asked.

Her eyes widened and she glanced away. "Oh him… He was just an overenthusiastic admirer." She said.

"Onchou. Tell me the truth." He urged her. "Don't do everything by yourself."

The violet haired girl sighed. "Alright. His grandfather was one of the council members and sent him to try to seduce me or get me into a compromising situation with him and use that against you."

The Kazekage's eyes narrowed as a hit of something dark she'd seen before in the world of his memories briefly surfaced. "And they wonder why I disbanded them." He muttered.

"It's ok though." She said trying to alleviate his tension. "I wasn't about to just let him have his way with me."

Gaara shook his head. "If he tries anything like that again, let me know right away through the soul link." He instructed her.

"Ok." She replied.

He nodded and glanced at the clock. "I should get you home." He said as he stood.

She nodded. "Yeah. Ryuu will be worried."

"So will your father." He reminded her gently as they stepped out into the night. "Have you decided what you're going to do as far the village goes?" he asked.

The violet haired girl sighed. "I don't know." She admitted. "I'm not sure how well I would do in the military since I'm an outsider."

Gaara nodded. "Well, your skill is more than adequate. You'd make a great addition to our ranks."

"You think so?" she asked glancing at him. He nodded and she smiled. "Well, I don't really know where to start." She admitted. "I mean in my village I was a genin but that was years ago."

"Why not participate in the chunin exams?" he suggested. "If you don't feel up to that, you can always just observe them. I have to go anyway. They're held in The Village Hidden in the Leaves so you'd be able to see your friends again."

The girl's eyes lit up at that. "Really? I guess I could go and watch at least."

Gaara nodded and offered her a little smile. "Alright then. The exams aren't for a few months still but it's something to look forward to."

"Yeah." She agreed smiling back at him. Her brow furrowed slightly as she touched her chest and the sand shinobi noticed immediately.

"I heard from Ryuu that you're struggling a little with that power of yours." he said.

She nodded. "Just a little. I'm having trouble controlling the amount of chakra I expend at once. I always end up using more than I intended."

The Kazekage nodded. "I understand. Try to bear with it and let me know if things get any worse."

She nodded as they arrived at the door to her house. "Thank you for walking me home." She said bowing slightly.

"It was my pleasure." He replied.

Onchou blushed and then moved forward wrapping her arms around the surprised Kazekage's neck. "Welcome home Gaara." She said softly as she blushed darker. "I really missed you and I'm glad you're back."

He blinked in surprise and then touched her head as a blush of his own heated his cheeks. "Thank you. It's good to be back." He replied. Wrapped his other arm around her. "I miss you too." He whispered.

The pair jumped apart when the door flew open and Ryuu stood before them his eyes narrowing slightly. "I told you so!" he exclaimed. "It's Onchou and raccoon eyes!" he called back into the house.

Tamiki appeared in the doorway and smiled at the pair. "Good to see you Lord Kazekage." He said bowing slightly. "Thank you for seeing my daughter home."

"It was no problem." Gaara replied. "It was my fault she was so late anyway." He looked at the amethyst eyed girl. "I'll come get you when my work is done tomorrow so we can discuss things further."

She nodded. "Thank you again Gaara. I'll see you tomorrow."

He nodded and waited until she was safely on the other side of the door before he walked towards his own home. In minutes he was ready for bed and slipped underneath the covers finally allowing his mind and body to rest. He stared up at the ceiling and sighed as he tossed an arm across his forehead. His meetings had been tedious and long and he'd been thankful when they finally ended. He'd been more anxious than normal to get home not just because of the lack of protection his village had, but because he was worried about girl with violet hair and amethyst eyes that he'd left behind only hours after what might have been to most traumatic experience of her life. He remembered how sad she'd looked when the leaf shinobi walked away and how she'd tried to smile in spite of her obvious discomfort when he'd told her he'd need to leave only hours later. His eyes began to close as he remember the joy on her face as she tried cake for the first time and the desire he felt to lick the frosting from her fingers and lips. "I must be more tired than I thought." He muttered as he pushed the distracting thought away and drifted asleep.

&%&

Onchou slipped the elastic into Ryuu's hair and nodded at her work. "All done Ryuu." She said with a smile touching the braid. "Are you sure you don't want to cut it?" she asked him as she walked with him outside.

"I'm sure." He assured her. "I like it long it covers up…" he touched the spot on his neck that had once been a port used to attach him to his glass prison.

She nodded and squeezed his hand as they walked towards the ninja academy. "I know. It's alright. I just thought it would be a little easier for you to deal with."

Ryuu smiled and squeezed her hand. "You're always like that. Worry about everyone else. Why don't you cut your hair?" he asked her.

She blinked and then touched her long violet colored locks. "I guess it's because my mother's hair was always long." She admitted.

"That seems like a good enough reason to me." He replied as they neared the gate and took the lunch box she handed to him. "I'm off!" he said with a smile as he hugged her. "I'll see you later Onchou!"

"Bye Ryuu!" she called out waving at him with a wide smile. He dashed inside the building and her face fell a little as she turned away from the gate well aware of the eyes on her and the whispers. Her dragons had clearly frightened the villagers. Not that she blamed them, they did seem terrifying.

"Look at how close she and that boy are! She's probably one of those teen mothers!" a woman whispered to her companion.

Onchou snorted at the comment and rolled her eyes. That was a new one, she knew that she looked older than her sixteen years but even if they thought she was twenty it was a stretch to say that Ryuu was her biological child. Feeling a little trapped on the ground she took to the roof tops dashing across the village until she landed in front of her own home and stepped inside. Immediately she could tell that the house was empty and she walked into the kitchen and picked up the note there.

"I'm at the shop today." It read.

The teenaged girl nodded and sighed. Never in her life had she had free time until now and she couldn't deny that it was boring. Not only that but it made her restless. Over the past couple weeks she'd read all of the books in the house and though she'd checked out more from the library, she needed to get out. Training was out of the question since the grounds had been reserved by the shinobi units.

"What to do?" she muttered to herself. Her eyes widened as a thought occurred to her and she quickly dashed to the bedroom that Tamiki had prepared for her and she dove into her closet and pulled out the answer to her frustration.

"Nothing like chakra boarding to clear the mind." She said as she laid it on her bed. With a quick motion she pulled her robes off and changed into her ninja gear consisting of long black pants, tall shinobi style sandals, wine colored top and black vest. She wrapped the bandages around her leg and secured her weapon's pouch to it and then tied her hair up into a high pony tail. Then she strapped the board and her sword to her back and pulled the robes over her clothes again and walked to the kitchen. She quickly scribbled a note to her father letting him know she was headed to the sand dunes near the outskirts of the village, grabbed a water bottle and an energy bar before she left locking the door securely behind her. As walked down the street she felt a song filled with jealousy nearing her and sighed. It was Rika, a shinobi with long black hair and bright green eyes. She was a couple of years older than Onchou and was notorious for being two faced, particularly when it came to the Kazekage. She'd been sweet as sugar in front of him and then claw the eyes of any woman that he looked twice at the moment he blinked.

"Onchou." The older shinobi said smiling sweetly at her. "How are you today?"

"I'm fine thank you." The violet haired girl replied quickly.

"I imagine you're better than fine after seeing Lord Gaara yesterday." The black haired girl moved closer and stretched up to whisper in her ear. "I saw you hug him you dirty whore." She hissed.

"I'm sorry that you have nothing better to do with your time than stalk people." The amethyst girl said without flinching. "Now if you'll excuse me, I actually have a destination in mind."

Rika's eyes widened and she narrowed as she glared at the younger girl. "Stay away from him!" she snarled.

"You say that like I'm the one that went looking for him." She replied. "Besides, isn't what Lord Kazekage does in his private life his business?"

"Bitch!" Rika hissed.

Onchou just shrugged and continued to walk forward leaving the older shinobi in the dust as she made her way to the sand dunes. "Her song is so tainted by jealousy it's making me sick." She muttered as she tossed off her robe and folded it laying it and her water on the ground. She pulled the board from her back and laid it down on the sand. With confidence, she stepped onto the board and focused her chakra bending her knees as it rose into the air and hovered. She took a deep breath closing her eyes briefly before she shot forward crouching slightly as she glided across the desert. Her eyes focused on an upcoming sand dune and she shifted her body and rode up it shooting into the air. She flipped and then landed gliding down the hill a smirk on her lips as she picked up speed. Her hair whipped in the wind as she approached another hill and she pushed her board faster launching even higher into the sky and whipped her body backwards to flip again in midair and then straightened her body just in time to land and glide down the embankment. She crouched low on her board and pushed herself event faster as she neared the canyon wall that marked the edge of the village her fingers trailing over the sand a little grunt escaping her lips as she kicked her board up and began to glide up the sheer wall.

After going as high as she could, she used her wind chakra to push away from it and began to fall headfirst back towards the ground. She brought her arms close to her body and began to spin and twist as she fell before she flipped at the last possible moment, released her board, grabbed it in her hand and tumbled into the sand. She grinned and laughed at the exhilarating feeling as she stared up at the sky at the blazing sun. "Gaara." She murmured as she conjured up his face up in her mind a little smile coming to her lips before she sensed a small group of angry songs nearing her. "Now what." She muttered as she got to her feet. A sigh of annoyance escaped her lips as she saw the group of young women nearing her. "Here we go again." She muttered.

%#%

Gaara went through the list of names written on the scroll in front of him one last time before pressing his seal onto the paper and finishing it off with his signature.

"That takes care of that troublesome project." Kankuro said and he rolled up the scroll. "Now it's just a matter of assembling them together."

The Kazekage nodded and then sensed a familiar chakra coming towards his door and sighed. "Speaking of troublesome." He muttered as the knock sounded at the door. "Come in." he called out quickly picking up a mission report to read to distract him from the black haired woman that entered his office.

"Lord Kazekage, it's so good to see you." Rika said bowing low.

Gaara's shoulders shifted forward slightly. The woman had probably been one of the nastiest children he'd ever met when they were growing up. He'd been the only one she was afraid of so she hadn't bothered him but he knew how she'd treated all of the other children around her. When he'd become Kazekage, she'd quickly changed her tune and sung his praises though he also knew she hadn't been among the shinobi who had rushed to meet him after his capture four years ago. In short, her affections thought fierce, were shallow and he wasn't interested.

He nodded in response to her greeting without looking up from the mission report. "Was there something you needed Rika?" he asked.

"Yes." She replied. "I was wondering how long you were planning on letting those two outsiders that arrived with the leaf stay here." She asked.

Kankuro raised a brow and Gaara glanced up from his paperwork. "They've been accepted as official citezens of Suna." He replied. "They can stay here as long as they would like."

Her green eyes widened. "Lord Kazekage! They're dangerous! You saw all of the damage those dragons of hers did!"

"I did." He replied. "They were a great asset to us during that battle. Our casualties surly would have been higher if it weren't for them."

Rika's brow twitched and she balled her hands into fists even as she plastered a sugary, sweet smile on her face. "Don't you think it's a possibility you're being deceived?" she asked. "That girl has been acting very suspiciously since you left."

Gaara's eyes narrowed slightly. "I don't recal asking you or anyone else to watch her."

"I apologize." Rika said bowing. "I know I overstepped my bounds I just worry for your safety and the safety of Suna. She's an outsider who had prior history with our enemy after all. How do you know she's not just tricking you? Maybe she was with that man willingly?"

Garra felt his anger flare at the woman's words. He knew exactly what Takuma had put her through. All of the pain, agony, and torture. The woman's ignorance was the only thing saving her from his sand blast.

"I suggest you mind your tongue about things you know little to nothing about." Kankuro said his eyes narrowing slightly. "Do you really have that little faith in your Kazekage's judegment?"

Rika blushed slightly and lowered her head. "No. It's not that. I just know she's up to no good!" she exclaimed. She glanced out the window and her eyes widened. "Look! Near the sand dunes! I just saw a blast! That girl was headed there when I was on my way here. I'm sure she's causing trouble."

Gaara glanced out the window his eyes narrowing slightly as he noted a blast of fire chakra. "Let's go." He said to Kankuro. He quickly climbed to the roof top and began to sprint across Suna and opened the soul link between himself and Onchou.

"What's going on?" he asked.

"Nothing important." She replied though he could hear the strain in her voice.

"Don't lie to me." He replied as he pushed himself faster with Kankuro and Rika hot on his heels. "I'm coming."

Onchou grimaced as the fire burned through her clothes to sear her skin. Her hand glowed green as she quickly went to work healing the burn.

"Get up and fight Dragon Queen!" Mei one of Rika's best friends snarled.

"Sorry. I'm not interested." The violet haired girl replied as she stood up now that the pain was under control.

"Bitch!" Rin another one of the black haired girl's friends exclaimed slamming her fist into her face a little smirk crossing her face. "Lord Kazekage deserves a warrior at his side, not a pathetic coward!"

"Says the girl who ambushed an innocent chakra boarder." The amethyst eyed girl muttered wiping the blood from her lip.

"Ugh!" Mei groaned. "This isn't getting us anywhere and I'm sure Rika already got Lord Gaara by now, let's just rough each other up before he gets here." She murmured turning to face her friend.

"Right but just singe me, don't actually burn me." Rin replied holding her arms out as the other girl conjured up her fire. Onchou's eyes widened as she sensed the wind change direction and dashed forward.

"Don't! The wind!" she exclaimed as she put herself between the two girls and gritted her teeth as she tried to deflect the girl's larger flame with her hands hissing as the fire burned her fingertips and pulled on her water chakra and struggled for form hand signs. "Water Style! Water Stream Jutsu!" she exclaimed as the water spewed from her hands dousing the flames.

"What happened?" Mei stammered. "My fire…"

"The wind." Onchou replied. "It changed just as you started your jutsu." She said wincing at the pain in her fingers.

"Wait! Does that mean that she just saved me?" Rin asked her eyes wide.

"I wasn't about to stand by and watch your friend here burn you." She replied. "It would've been painful for both of you."

"But we…" Mei started.

"Onchou!" Kankuro called out as he materialized near them along with Gaara and an angry looking Rika. "Are you alright?" he asked jogging up to her.

"Yeah." She replied quickly tucking her burned hands inside her pockets.

"You don't look like you're alright." He replied frowning as he took in her disheveled appearance and the bruises forming on her face.

"I just took a nasty fall while I was chakra boarding." She said motioning to the board that had been left where she'd laid it just before the girl's jumped her.

"What was the blast of fire then?" he asked.

"Oh that… Mei asked me to help her with a new fire jutsu." Onchou lied.

"You should've been more responsible!" Rika exclaimed. "You could see the blast from the Kazekage's office. How reckless especially with how unpredictable the wind is here!" she turned to the Kazekage. "See what I mean? She's not safe to have in the village."

Gaara ignored her and walked forward. "That firejutsu was a Fire Cannon." He said as he neared Onchou. "It's unique to one clan in this village and it's not the one that Onchou belongs to." His eyes flickered to Mei who flinched under his cold gaze. "Also, I can tell from the bruises that you were punched by someone with very small but powerful hands." He replied glancing at Rin who cringed before he came level with the amethyst eyed girl. "Show me your hands." She sighed and pulled them from her pockets and he took them in his own gently examining the wounds. "You deflected a fire attack with your bare hands which means that you weren't protecting yourself but someone else otherwise you would've doused the flames sooner."

Rin and Mei both hung their heads but Rika stepped in. "There must be an explanation for this! I'm sure they were all just training together when something went wrong right girls?"

"If they were training together, then Onchou would've put her chakra board with the rest of her things over there." Kankuro said motioning to the folded robe and water bottle sitting a short distance away.

Rika brow twitched as the two girls hung their heads lower. "Come." Gaara said motioning to the amethyst eyed girl. "Let's get you patched up. Kankuro will take your things home for you."

"Alright." She replied blushing slightly as he walked with her past the black haired girl.

"I would advise against you trying anything like this in the future." Gaara said as he passed by his eyes flashing dangerously at the girl. "I am not nearly as tolerant as I appear to be."

Kankuro watched his brother walk away with Onchuou at his side and glared at the three young women. "You should all consider yourselves lucky that my brother is the one in charge and not me. All three of you could be thrown in prison for assaulting her like that."

Rika snorted and walked away her black hair fanning out behind her. Mei walked over and picked up the chakra board while Rin picked up her robe and water bottle and handed them to the puppeteer. "We're very sorry." Rin said bowing low.

"Very sorry." Mei agreed bowing. "We just went along with Rika's plan but it was still wrong of us."

"She didn't cry no matter what we did or said to her and she even protected me." Rin said looking down at the ground.

Kankuro sighed. "She's just like him. Too afraid to stand up for herself because people have labeled them monsters."

"I hate to admit it, but I can see why he might like her." Mei muttered. "She's actually a really good person."

The painted faced shinobi nodded. "She is. In fact she's saved his life twice."

Rin's eyes widened as Mei gasped. "She saved him? Twice?" Rin gasped.

He nodded. "You were really picking on the savior of the man you claim to love so much." He said as her began to walk away. "For future reference, I suggest you find out the whole story before you go off and try something stupid."

Gaara sat in front of Onchou in the infirmary of the Kazekage's building and wrapped her burned digits with incredible gentleness. He then pressed a cool, damp rag to her cheek that was starting to swell. "I'm sorry about all of this." He said as he pulled a twig from her hair. "I had no idea that the young women of the village were giving you such trouble."

The violet haired girl shrugged and smiled. "This is nothing compared to what I've experienced in the past."

"That doesn't mean it's alright." He argued as he pulled a dead leaf from her hair and studied it for a moment and sighed. "Perhaps it would be safer for you there."

Onchou's eyes widened. "If I'm a burden to you then I can leave." She said moving away from him. "I didn't mean to cause in trouble. I just went out there to chakra board."

He looked at her and sensed her pain and uncertainty through the soul link and reached out to her touching her on the shoulder. "That's not what I meant." He assured her. "I don't want you to leave. I'm just thinking about what's best for you."

"I can handle it." She assured him. "Please don't send me away. I'm happiest when I'm near you!" she blushed at her own words and looked down.

Gaara's eyes widened at her words and then his expression softened as he reached out and rested his hand on her forehead. "Same here." He replied softly. She raised her head to meet his gaze and suddenly became trapped. His normally cool and conservative gaze was now filled with warmth and a spark of something extra. She could sense his nervousness as he moved his hand from her head to her cheek and moved closer to her as his eyes drifted downward to focus on her lips. "Onchou." He said murmured as he began to lean forward.

"Lord Kazekage are you ready for the meeting?" Leo asked as he pushed the infirmary door open and walked inside.

The two jerked apart blushing and Gaara quickly stood. "Yes." He replied quickly before turning to Onchou. "Go straight home. I'll come get you after my duties for the day a completed."

She nodded. "Yes Lord Gaara." She said bowing to him. "Thank you for taking care of my hands for me." She walked away and bowed to the tall sand shinobi. "Sir Leo." She murmured before she left the room.

"What happened to Miss Onchou's hands?" Leo asked as he walked beside the Kazekage.

"A couple of girl's attacked her while she was out in the sand dunes today." He replied his mast of calm hiding burning anger swirling inside of him. Her burns were serious enough to need extended treatment and though her darker skin hid it better than his pale skin would have, the bruise on her face was darkening.

"I see." Leo replied. "Miss Onchou is very strong though, how were they able to get the best of her?"

"She didn't fight back." The sand wielder said as they walked.

"Why not?" Leo replied.

"I'm not sure." The Kazekage admitted. As he tried to come up with a reason, he remembered her in the panic room with Ryuu and how she'd told the council that the only reason she hadn't killed them was because doing so would stain his hands as well as her own. He sighed and shook his head. "I believe it's partially because she understands that she's still an outsider her and is under high scrutiny. It's also likely because she knows that her actions will inadvertently affect me as well since I was the one to authorize her acceptance into the village."

Leo's eyes widened and then softened. "I see. She's wise beyond her years."

"She was raised in an environment that force her to grow up for more quickly than she should have." Gaara replied.

"Perhaps we should assign someone to keep an eye on her." Leo suggested. "That way if something like this happens again, she won't have to defend herself."

"Good idea." Gaara replied. "I'll see to that personally."

"Lord Kazekage, how do you feel about that girl?" Leo asked. "You don't have to tell me." He added quickly.

"I care about her more than any other woman in this world." He replied quickly before entering the room where the new council had assembled.


	2. Chapter 2

**Author's Notes: Thanks for the support! I know that this is a less common pairing but I'm happy to have people stopping by and taking a look anyway. This is a sequel to Moving Towards Tomorrow another fanfiction I wrote so if you want to know more about Onchou's and Gaara's history together, reading that first helps. Anyway, please enjoy!**

 **%*%**

Onchou sighed as she walked through the streets of Suna flexing her bandaged fingers. "This is so annoying." She muttered. "I don't know how Lee can stand it."

"You're more annoying." Came a sharp female voice from behind.

"Haven't you had enough today?" Onchou replied not bothering to stop and turn towards Rika. "I know I have."

"How did he know!?" she snarled. "How did you tell him?"

"I didn't." the violet haired girl replied. "He's very smart, he figured it out on his own."

"Bitch!" Rika cried out. "I'll make sure he doesn't look at you!" she snarled as she leapt at her drawing a kunai.

Onchou reacted instantly and grabbed the girl in midair and slammed her to the ground knocking the knife from her hand. "I didn't know it was possible to be this stupid." She muttered as the girl struggled beneath her. "Do you honestly think killing me will make him look at you? I suggest you take a step back before you lose yourself to the dark madness in your soul." Rika hissed as the violet haired girl holding her down released her and picked up the kunai tossing it back to her. "A word of advice." She said. "I spent six years of my life as a human lab rat for a mad scientist. That poison of yours won't even make me flinch let alone kill me."

Rika stared at her and then glared as she walked away. "I'll get you for this." She snarled. "Lord Gaara is mine!"

&#&

Gaara walked out of the Kazekage's building and quickly made his way to the best flower shop in town. The old woman at the counter smiled at him and went to the back and retrieved a single white long stemmed rose. "Anything else?" she asked with a knowing gleam in her eyes.

He blushed and nodded and pointed to a unique looking while flower in in the display case. "I'll take that." He replied.

The woman raised an eyebrow and retrieved the flower. "Is there a special meaning behind it?" she asked. "This is a gardenia after all. You know what they mean in the language of flowers don't you?" The Kazekage nodded and she smiled as she wrapped it up and handed it to him. "Are you going to tell her then?"

He nodded and then left the shop and headed towards the Buki residence. "Lord Gaara!" a feminine voice called out. He nearly groaned at the sound as Rika jogged up to him. "I wanted to apologize for today. I was out of line and I'm sorry. Please let me make it up to you."

"I'm not the one you should be apologizing to." He said stiffly as he walked around her.

"Please allow me to make it up to you." She purred moving closer to him brushing her hand against his and he jerked it away.

"Touch me again and you'll wish you hadn't." he snarled.

The woman's green eyes widened. "Lord Gaara." She murmured.

"Go shower some other man with your shallow affections." He said glaring at her. "Women like you disgust me. You put someone very dear to me in harm's way today. If you provoke me any further you'll learn firsthand that the monster you once feared still exists." He left her gaping at him and took to the roof tops not wanting any more distractions and quickly arrived at the Buki house. He knocked on the door and was greeted by a downcast looking Ryuu.

"Hello Lord Gaara." The ruby eyed child murmured.

"What's wrong?" he asked as he stepped inside the house surprised the boy hadn't called him by the nickname he'd assigned to him. They boy turned and he was shocked to see that his once waist length silver hair had been cut short and now hung to just below his ears. "Who did this to you?" he asked as Ryuu walked into the living room and climbed into Onchou's lap who wrapped her arms around the child and smoothed her bandaged hands over his hair.

"Someone at the academy." He replied. "It happened during a sparing drill. He said it was an accident but I know that it wasn't."

"I'm very sorry." Gaara said looking at the pair. "It seems you both had rough days."

"Rough days happen." Onchou replied. "It just makes the good days even better right?" she said stroking Ryuu's cheek.

The child nodded. "Yeah, but now everyone can see it." He muttered touching the black port on the back of his neck.

The violet haired girl thought for a moment and then smiled. "I think I have an idea." She said. "I'm going to go out for little bit, when I come back I'll have a surprise for you ok?"

Ryuu sniffed and nodded. "Ok Onchou."

"That means it'll be just you and me for dinner bud." Tamiki said walking into the room. "How about I make hamburgers? They're still your favorite's right?" he said with a smile.

The ruby eyed child smiled. "Yeah."

"Come with me then. I'll show you how to make them." He said extending his hand to the boy.

"Thank you father." Onchou replied.

"Don't worry about it." The older shinobi assured her. "Get going. We'll enjoy ourselves here."

She nodded and walked with Gaara to the door. "Is it alright if we stop somewhere while we're out tonight?" she asked.

He nodded. "Of course." He replied. "Shall we?"

Onchou smiled and followed him out into the evening air as he led her to a place she'd been twice before. The village burial ground. Knowing what his intended destination was, she followed slightly behind him until he arrived at Lady Chiyo's grave and replaced the withered white rose there with the fresh one in his hand. He knelt in front of her grave and bowed his head before standing again. "That rose wasn't as withered as I expected it to be after two weeks." He said glancing at the violet haired girl beside him.

The violet haired girl blushed and looked down. "I just thought she'd like a fresh one." She replied shifting her feet nervously.

"Thank you." He said softly. "I appreciate it and I know that she does too. Please come with me." He said extending his hand to her.

She nodded and took the hand he offered her in his own and walked slightly behind him as he led her through the burial grounds to one of the grander looking stones. A fresh bouquet of flowers lay on the grave and Gaara's eyes softened at the sight. "It seems Kankuro has already stopped by to visit." He pulled Onchou closer to him. "This is the resting place of my mother." He murmured.

The girl's amethyst eyes widened and then misted. "I see." She replied as he knelt in front of the stone. She knelt beside him and bowed her head as she offered a prayer of gratitude to the woman resting there.

Gaara also offered a prayed of gratitude before introducing the girl he'd brought with him and requesting her blessing as he made the decision to take another step in a positive direction on the path he'd chosen for himself. He rose to his feet and Onchou followed.

"I don't recall seeing her in any of your memories." The violet haired girl said. "She died when you were an infant right?"

He nodded. "It was because of the jutsu that sealed the one tails inside of me."

Her head lowered. "I'm very sorry."

Gaara shook his head. "Don't be. She loved me and that's what matters."

"So is that flower for her?" Onchou asked noting the white bloom in his hand.

"No." he replied lifting the flower. "It's for you."

She blushed and smiled as she accepted the gift and lifted it to her nose breathing deeply. "It smells so sweet." She said glancing up at him. "Thank you Gaara. What kind of flower is it?"

"It's called a Gardenia." He replied. "It's one of the few flowers that we can cultivate well here. It just needs a little moisture in a green house and flourishes in this harsh heat."

"It's beautiful." She said fingering the soft petals.

Gaara nodded and stepped closer to her. "It has two meanings in the language of flowers." He said.

"Oh? I didn't know that." Onchou replied. "What are they?"

"The first is 'You're lovely'" he said gazing at her face.

She smiled. "That fits. It's lovely too."

He shook his head a little and moved closer to her lifting a hand to her face gently stroking her cheek. "The second meaning is 'for my secret love'." he murmured.

Her eyes widened as his gaze warmed while he looked down on her. "Onchou. I love you." He said softly. "Will you be mine?"

Her eyes widened and the misted with tears. "Gaara, are you sure about this? I'm an outsider, people already don't like me, I'll only cause you trouble." She stammered.

"Onchou." He murmured fingering a lock of her hair. "Do you love me?"

A tear slipped from her eye and she nodded. "I do. I love you Gaara."

He slipped his fingers under her chin and gently tipped her face up as he leaned forward and pressed his lips to hers. It wasn't the first time his lips had touched hers but he quickly realized that there was a large difference between an accidental kiss and an intentional one. Her lips were smooth and warm against his own and his free hand instinctively reached out to circle her waist and pulled her closer to him. He moved his lips slowly against hers and changed the angle deepening the kiss. He heard her sigh in response and move closer to him her arms slipping around his neck. It sparked to life fire in his belly and though he wanted to explore that feeling, he knew that the time and place weren't appropriate. He released her lips and then laid his forehead against hers as he tried to steady his ragged breathing and the thundering of his heart.

"Onchou, please say yes." He murmured. "I don't care that you're an outsider or any of those other things. My only concern if you and you're wellbeing. We can keep our relationship a secret for now to make the adjustment easier but," he pulled her against his chest. "I want you by my side."

The dark skinned girl trembled in his arms and then nodded. "Yes." She whispered against his shoulder. "I've been yours since the day I saw you in The Land of Rivers."

He pulled away from her and smiled tucking her hair behind her ears. "That makes me so happy." He admitted. "Come, you were going to get something for Ryuu, were you not?"

She nodded. "Yes. I think if he wears a scarf, it'll cover up that mark pretty well. It might be hot and a bit of a challenge to adjust to but it should work."

"That sounds good to me." He replied as they walked through the burial grounds and back onto the streets of Suna.

Together they found a clothing shop and she bought a red scarf that matched Ryuu's eyes. Then they stopped by a small restaurant and ate together exchanging warm glances and brushing limbs under the table. Within a couple of hours, he'd returned her to her door.

"Starting tomorrow, you'll have someone assigned to see to your safety." He told her as they stood on her door step.

"That's not necessary." She replied blushing. "I can take care of myself."

He reached out and touched her hair. "Please." He said softly. "It'll give me peace of mind. I can't protect you with my own hands all of the time but I can do this for you."

The violet haired girl chuckled and glanced at her feet. "Well it's hard to say no when you put it that way."

He nodded and lifted her hand and pressed his lips to it. "I'll see you tomorrow." He promised her.

Onchou nodded blushed. "Ok. See you tomorrow then." She said opening up the soul link. "I love you." She whispered in his mind.

"I love you too." He replied.

She blushed at the unspoken exchange and moved away from him letting her fingertips linger for a moment against his before she went inside.

%*%

The next morning Onchou sat up in bed and stretched. She glanced over at her bedside table her eyes falling on the white gardenia in a clear vase and blushed her fingers tracing over the lips that Gaara had kissed the night before. A true smile crossed her face and light sparked to life in her eyes as she pranced over to her closet and went through her clothes deciding on her black pants and a royal blue tunic style top. She secured her weapons pouch into place on her leg and pulled her hair half back making sure to leave some covering her pointed ears before she walked out of her room into the main part of the house.

"Hello father." She said smiling at the blonde haired man hovering over the stove top.

He turned at the sound of her voice and smile. "Good morning Onchou. You're up earlier than usual."

The violet haired girl smiled. "Yeah. I was too happy to sleep in." she admitted as blush stained her cheeks.

The older man noticed and cocked a brow. "Something happened between you and Lord Gaara didn't it?" he asked.

Onchou chewed on her lip nervously and nodded. "We're together now." She admitted softly. "But it's a secret for now." She added quickly.

Tamiki smiled at his daughter. "I'm happy for you." He told her. "Lord Gaara is a wonderful man." His face fell slightly becoming serious. "You do understand though right? He is the Kazekage so your relationship will never be easy. His time for you will be limited, his life will be in danger from time to time and you'll have to deal with all of the drama good and bad that follows him around."

"I know that." Onchou replied as she pulled plates down from the cupboard. "I also know that I love him and he loves me."

The amethyst eyed man smiled at her. "Well that's all that really matters isn't it?" he looked into her eyes. "Hold onto him and never let him go and he'll do the same."

She smiled. "I plan to." She glanced up as Ryuu walked into the room rubbing his eyes.

"Good morning." He said with a yawn tugging at the red scarf around his neck.

"Good morning sunshine." Onchou replied wrapping her arms around him and placing a soft kiss on his forehead. "Did you sleep ok last night?"

He nodded "Yeah." He sat down at the table as Tamiki carried over plates laden with eggs, bacon, and toast and Onchou carried over glasses filled with milk. "I'm not sure how I feel about going back to school though." He admitted.

The violet haired girl smiled and reached out to touch his hand. "I understand. I'll walk with you to school though and if you want, I'll come eat lunch with you. You're strong and brave. I know you can do it."

Ryuu smiled and touched his scarf. "You really think so?" he asked.

She nodded and smiled. "Who else can make a seven foot tall ice man in the middle of the desert?"

The silver haired child chuckled. "No one."

"Exactly!" she exclaimed with a smile.

Ryuu smiled and then his eyes narrowed. "You're awfully happy this morning. Did something happen between you and raccoon eyes?" he asked. Onchou blushed and coughed as she choked on her milk. "I knew it!" the ruby eyed boy exclaimed. "I'll kick his trash!"

Tamiki chuckled and touched the boy on his shoulder. "Settle down." He said to the boy. "Lord Gaara cares a lot about you and Onchou. It's not a bad thing."

Ryuu wrinkled his nose as he pouted. "I'm still going to beat him up." He muttered.

Onchou chuckled as she finished her food and took her dishes to the sink and laid them down. Ryuu followed suit and adjusted his scarf one last time before they walked to the door. "I'll see you later Father." Onchou called out.

"Alright." The older shinobi replied. "I'll be home today working on designs."

She nodded and took Ryuu's hand in hers. "Let's go." She said as they stepped out the house. A little shriek of surprise left her lips as a sand shinobi materialized in front of her. He was a little taller than the average man with caramel colored hair and hazel eyes. He was dressed in tan and navy and the lower part of his face was covered. From what she could tell, he seemed to be in his mid-twenties.

"Lady Onchou." He said kneeling in front of her. "My name is Kai, I have been ordered by Lord Kazekage to see to your safety while he is not physically present at your side."

The violet haired girl blinked in surprise and then nodded. "Ok." She said awkwardly. "You don't need to kneel before me or anything like that." She assured him.

He nodded and stood. "Very well my lady. As per my orders I will watch over you from a distance unless you would rather me stay by your side."

Onchou shook her head. "That's fine unless you get bored or lonely." She replied nervously.

"We're going to be late." Ryuu reminded her.

"Right. We should get going." She said taking the boy's hand in her own. "I'll see you around? I guess?"

Kai nodded. "Yes Lady Onchou." He replied with a small bow before he vanished in a puff of smoke.

"Who was that?" Ryuu asked as they walked.

"My bodyguard I guess." Onchou replied. "Lord Gaara said that he'd be assigning me one."

The ruby eyed child nodded. "I guess he's not such a bad guy." He admitted.

The violet haired girl chuckled as they neared the academy and noted how Ryuu squeezed her hand seemingly reluctant to release her hand. With a sigh she glanced around the school yard and spotted the teacher. "Would you like me to talk to your sensei?" she asked him.

The silver haired boy shook his head but tightened his grip on his scarf and her hand. With a sigh she knelt down in front of him ignoring all of the eyes on her and placed her hands on his shoulders. "Ryuu, I know that you want to deal with this alone. That's how we've always done things after all." She said brushing his bangs out of his face. "We don't need to do that anymore though. We're not surrounded by monsters and mad scientists who want to use and hurt us. We're part of a village now. It's ok to speak up."

He smiled at her and nodded. "Ok. Will you talk to Sen Sensei?" he asked motioning to a sand shinobi with dark hair and warm amber eyes.

"I'd be happy to." She replied as she stood up and walked through the gate with him. They walked up to the kind looking man and Onchou bowed to him. "Hello Sen Sensei." She said softly. "I'd like to talk to you about what happened yesterday if that's alright."

The dark haired man nodded. "No problem. Let's go inside."

They sat together in front of his desk as Ryuu explained the situation his eyes often flickering to Onchou for support as he talked.

"I see." Sen replied touching his chin. "I'm very sorry that happened to you. Thank you for telling me. I'll see what I can do about making sure it doesn't happen again. Go ahead and play outside with the others until class starts." He said with a smile. Ryuu's eyes lit up slightly as Onchou nodded and he dashed outside. "I don't believe we've ever really formally met before this." The middle aged man said extending his hand to her. "I'm Sen."

"I'm Onchou." She replied taking his hand and grasping it her own before she released it again.

He nodded. "Thank you for bringing that to my attention. The boy who committed the act told me it was an accident and when Ryuu didn't deny it I believed him. I'm glad we were able to clear things up."

The violet haired girl nodded. "Thank you for listening. He's afraid to stand up for himself because of the harshness of our pervious situation."

Sen nodded. "I heard a little about that from Lord Kazekage when he first asked me to let Ryuu into the academy." He turned to her. "What are you to Ryuu if you don't mind me asking? I asked him the other day and he replied 'My everything'."

Onchou smiled a little. "That's a good question." She admitted as they walked out into the school yard watching as the silver haired child played tag with some of the other children. "Ryuu was born in a test tube and I have no idea if he had or has parents. I was the only girl kept at the underground hideout that he was so I naturally started caring for him from the time he was born. I guess in that sense, I'm as close to a mother as he's ever had." She sighed and tucked her hair behind her ear. "All I really know is that he's like family to me. I love him and I've watched over him his entire life."

"A child caring for another child." Sen said shaking his head. "This world is a cruel one."

The violet haired teen nodded. "That's true but it would've been worse if he'd had no one at all." She smiled at him. "Thank you for looking after him and helping him see that he can trust adults."

Sen nodded. "It's my pleasure. Thank you for stopping by."

She smiled and waved goodbye to Ryuu before leaving the school yard breathing a little sigh of relief. As she was walking away, she heard someone call her name and was surprised to see a middle aged woman surrounded by who she recognized as small group of mothers motioning to her. Cautious but curious she approached her knowing that Kai was nearby if something happened. "Yes." She responded carefully.

"We heard what you said to that silver haired child." The woman said looking down at the ground. "I'm afraid we haven't been as welcoming as we should have. Without knowing much about you except for your power and exotic appearance we judged you as dangerous and shunned you. Please forgive us for our rudeness." She said as she bowed. "It's clear to us that you love that child and have raised him well. We don't know the circumstances as to why a young woman like yourself would be raising a boy like that but we'd like to get to know you better. Our Kazekage has welcomed you with open arms and we should do the same."

Onchou's eyes widened and then tears formed in her eyes and slid down her cheeks. She quickly wiped them away. "I'm sorry." She replied quickly. "Thank you very much. It means a lot to me."

"Onchou! Why are you crying!?" Ryuu exclaimed running up to the fence line. "Are they hurting you?"

"No Ryuu." She said patting him gently on the head. "They are actually being really nice to me."

He blinked and then smiled. "Oh, well that's ok then. More people should be nice to you. You're still going to eat lunch with me today right?"

She nodded. "Of course. Now hurry back. Class is about to start."

The ruby eyed child smiled. "Ok. I love you!" he exclaimed.

"I love you too." She replied as he grinned and ran towards the school building.

The middle aged woman smiled at the exchange. "We're getting together tomorrow for tea at ten tomorrow morning." She said handing a piece of paper with an address printed on it. "You're welcome to join us."

"Thank you." Onchou said with a smile as she slipped the paper into her pocket. "I'll see you tomorrow then." She walked away still smiling as she approached the market place. A little tune slipped from her lips as she walked looking at the shop windows and her gaze was drawn to a music shop and she quickly dashed inside. Her eyes lit up as she noted all of the instruments and sheet music around. Her gaze was drawn to a CD displayed on the counter and she moved forward and picked it up grinning at the glossy image of her friend Fifield on the cover. "You're still as ridiculous as ever." She chuckled as she noted the cheesy smile plastered on his face. She flipped it over and chuckled at one of the song titles. "My Songs Miss Your Harmony". "Subtle." She muttered before she put it down and walked back out of the store not trusting herself to stay inside without playing as many of the instruments as she could. Granted she only knew how to play three but she was willing to give the rest a shot.

As she walked down the street her gaze was drawn to the Kazekage's building a little smile touching her lips as she zeroed in on the three windows of Gaara's office. Her smile quickly faded as she felt her chest throb with pain. Her hand went to the spot as she took a deep breath. "I need to release a little chakra." She thought to herself. She gritted her teeth as she heard a familiar soul song coming towards her.

"If it isn't the brazen hussy." Rika snarled crossing her arms over her chest. Onchou sighed and continued walking ignoring the girl as best she could trying to walk past. "I saw you kiss him." The black haired girl hissed grabbing her rival by the hair. "You should be punished!" she snarled pulling a bottle of acid from her pocket ready to splash it on the girl.

In a flash Kai appeared between them and knocked the vile substance out of the black haired girl's grip sending it splashing to the ground. "You've gone too far." He said gripping her wrist until she released Onchou's hair. "Come. We're going to see the Kazekage."

Rika's eyes widened as he wrenched her arms behind her back and securing them with ropes. "What is this?" the dark haired girl demanded.

"Thank you Kai." Onchou breathed as she picked up the bottle carefully and did her best to cover up the nasty liquid.

"Of course Lady Onchou." He replied. "Shall we?"

She nodded and they walked quickly to the Kazekage's building. Within minutes they arrived at the red head's office. Onchou stepped forward and knocked on the door.

"Come in." Gaara's low voice replied.

She couldn't believe how much just the sound of his voice could make her heart race. She pushed the door opened and felt her heart skip a beat as his pale blue green eyes met hers before she bowed. "Lord Gaara." She murmured. "I'm so sorry to trouble you."

"What happened?" he asked noting the shinobi he'd put in charge of watching over his lover and Rika standing behind her.

Onchou simply walked to Kankuro and handed him the bottle. "Be careful." She told him as he examined it curiously. "It's very potent."

"This is acid." The puppeteer noted his gaze darkening. "What happened Kai?"

"Miss Rika attempted to throw this on Lady Onchou this morning." He explained.

"You're wrong!" the dark haired girl shrieked. "This is a set up!"

Gaara took a deep breath and rested his head on his laced fingers. "Rika, I warned you before that if you tried to hurt Onchou again that I would be forced to take action. You leave me no choice. You will be arrested and tried for your crimes."

"What is this!?" Rika shrieked. "You can't do this to me! This is all her fault!" she glared at the girl. "You're just an outsider! A monster! It isn't fair!" she collapsed on the floor. "It isn't fair. You're beautiful, powerful, and smart! No one that perfect should exist!"

Onchou sighed. "You're being a bit unfair if you ask me." She replied. "The reason you're so obsessed with Gaara is because of the things you just mentioned. He's beautiful, powerful, and smart which is why you want him so badly. You don't care that his looks were just luck of the draw, or that his power is the reason he was shunned for years, or that he had to study and work hard to become as smart as he is. You just want it for yourself." She glared at the young woman. "I'm pretty because of random genetics and my looks literally drove my mother insane so I hate them. I'm powerful because of a jutsu that went wrong which led to the destruction of my village and the death of my family. It was something I didn't want or ask for but I did work to control it so that I could protect the ones close to me. I'm smart because I wanted to escape my captors and the only way to do that was to outsmart them." She clenched her fists. "If you want to be powerful, smart, and strong then maybe you should spend less time trying to get rid of me and more time training or studying!"

Rika's eyes widened. "I… I didn't know…"

"Yet you did all of that to her." Kankuro replied.

Gaara nodded. "Who I choose to spend my time with is up to me and me alone." He said standing up from his desk. "I am my own person and will choose my partner according to my own personal desires." He turned to Kai. "Please take her to the police station. Onchou will stay will me until you return."

"Yes Lord Kazekage." Kai replied with a bow. "I'll return shortly." He assured them as he left the office.

Onchou sighed and lowered her head. "I'm really sorry." She murmured. "I didn't mean to cause you trouble."

Gaara sighed and swept forward gathering her in his arms. "Don't apologize." He replied holding her close. "Her actions weren't you fault. You didn't do anything to provoke her. She would've done the same thing to any woman I gave my attention to." He squeezed her gently. "I'm so glad nothing happened to you."

The violet haired girl nodded and wrapped her arms around his waist. She laid her head against his chest and closed her eyes listening to the steady beating of his heart and felt warm and comfortable yet excited at the same time. After a few moments, he released her and she stepped back tucking her hair behind her ears as a knock sounded at the door.

"Come in." Gaara called out as he sat at his desk.

A young man walked in and bowed. "I have a message here from Lady Temari." He said walking forward and putting the scroll on the Kazekage's desk.

"Thank you Sota." Gaara replied. "Is there anything else?"

The young man shook his head and then glanced over at Onchou who smiled at him. "Miss Onchou! What are you doing here?" he asked.

"Just waiting for someone." She replied with a smile.

"Do you want to spar with me later this afternoon?" the dark haired youth asked a little blush coming to his cheeks. "The pointers you gave me last time really helped."

The violet haired girl blinked in surprise. "I was going to do some training later." She replied. "I wasn't planning on sparing though."

"That's ok!" he exclaimed. "I'll just come and watch!"

"Alright then. I'll see you on the training grounds later then." She said.

"Awesome!" he said grinning before he bowed to Gaara again and hurried out the door.

"I've never seen that kid so energetic." Kankuro admitted. "What did you do to him?"

Onchou chuckled. "I just helped him with his taijutsu a couple of times. Apparently it helped him get the upper hand on his rival or something like that? He's been a fan of mine ever since."

"I didn't realize you were so popular with the boys." Kankuro said with a wink.

The violet haired girl sighed. "It's not like that." She muttered. "To be honest, I get along better with men than women." She said leaning against Gaara's desk. "I had a pretty rough relationship with my mentally ill mother and strict grandmother and after they both died, I was captured by Takuma. The only interaction I had with women were when I went on missions which isn't really long enough to figure anything out." She chuckled. "I've learned more about women in the two months I've been here than I have during my entire life."

"Has it been that long?" Gaara asked as he opened the scroll from his sister.

"Yeah." Kankuro replied. "It's a little crazy isn't it?"

Onchou nodded and touched the brand on her arm. "I still have trouble believing he's really gone." She murmured. "I'm terrified I'm going to wake up and find out that all of this is a hallucination brought on by one of Takuma's drugs."

"It's not a dream." Gaara assured her covering her hand with his own. She nodded and smiled at him before wincing again as the pain in her chest throbbed. "Your chest?"

She nodded. "I just need to release a little chakra." She replied. "It's no big deal."

The Kazekage frowned but turned back to the scroll. "That was fast." He muttered.

"What was fast?" Kankuro asked.

"This is an invitation to Temari and Shikamaru's wedding." Gaara replied.

The hooded ninja's eyes widened. "Seriously!?" he exclaimed reading it over his younger brother's shoulder. "When is it?"

"Three weeks from now." Gaara replied. "She invited you as well." He said looking at the violet haired girl.

She blinked in surprise. "Really?"

He nodded. "Will you go?"

Onchou smiled and nodded. "I'd love to go. I've never been to a wedding." She admitted.

Gaara smiled at her. "Well, it's about time you went."

Kai appeared in a puff of smoke and bowed. "Lord Kazekage. Rika has been booked into jail." He said with a low bow.

"Thank you very much Kai." Gaara replied. "I'll let you go then Onchou."

She nodded. "Yes. I promised to eat lunch with Ryuu today." She said glancing at the time. "Thank you very much Lord Gaara." She said bowing low.

Gaara waited until she raised her head and then captured her eyes with his own. "I'll see you tonight." He promised.

Onchou smiled and left the room with Kai by her side.

 **P.S. I'm sorry this chapter came out so late. I've been busy with life and working on my own book. Anyway, I hope it was work the wait!**


	3. Chapter 3

Onchou smiled as she sat beside Ryuu as he rattled off what he'd learned at the academy.

"Onchou, why do I know so much more than the others in my class about how to use chakra anyway?" he asked.

The violet haired girl sighed. "It's because you needed to learn it quickly. Here in this village, the children are surrounded and protected by family and friends. People like us who didn't have that had to become strong quickly so that we could protect ourselves."

"Oh." He replied picking at his food.

"Don't worry though. We don't have to live like that anymore. We're free now." She said ruffling his hair.

He smiled. "That's right." His ruby eyes shifted their focus as a little girl with brown hair and big green eyes approached. "Oh, hi there Risa."

The little girl blushed and bowed. "Hi Ryuu." She replied. "Is this Onchou?"

The silver haired boy nodded and smiled. "Yeah."

"I've heard a lot about you." The girl said moving closer to the pair. "You're very pretty."

"Thank you." The violet haired teen replied with a smile. "So are you, Risa. Are you one of Ryuu's friends?"

The green eyed girl blushed again and nodded. "I am."

Onchou smiled. "Thank you very much for being his friend."

Risa smiled. "Uh huh!" she then turned to Ryuu. "Do you want to play tag before lunch is over?" she asked.

Ryuu hesitated tugging at his scarf his gaze flickering to Onchou who smiled. "Go ahead." She said. "I need to go to the training grounds anyway. I'll see you when you get home from school."

"Ok." He replied. "Is raccoon eyes coming over tonight?" he asked.

"He said he was." Onchou replied with a smile. "So yes but I don't know what time." He admitted.

Ryuu sighed. "Man, he and I really need to have a talk." He muttered.

The amethyst eyed girl chuckled and ruffled his hair. "Go have fun." She said before leaving the school yard. With a quick, steady gait she made her way to the training grounds as her chest throbbed again. "Such a pain." She muttered as she dropped down into the empty field. She shrugged out of the robes she wore over her clothes and folded them neatly laying them on a nearby bench before walking out into the middle of the field. Her eyes closed as she stood in the middle of the field letting her water chakra flow to the surface of her being. Since it was the hardest one to use in the dry heat of the desert, she was hoping that it would use the most chakra in one shot. Her hands formed signs before her palms pressed together. "Water Style. Water Barrier Jutsu!" she exclaimed creating a ball of swirling water around herself. Her brow furrowed in concentration as she increased the size of the ball until it was twice its normal size. Her hands formed more signs and the water reacted as water whips extended from the ball slashing the mannequins around her. Sweat rolled down her cheeks as the whips retracted and she formed more hand signs changing the ball of water into a waterspout frowning as the dryness of the air dampened her efforts to force it higher. After several minutes of maintaining the flow of water and her chakra she felt her control begin to waver and cut the flow releasing the jutsu and sending water tumbling to the ground soaking herself in the process.

"That was amazing!" Sota exclaimed dashing forward across the field.

Onchou blinked in surprise and nodded as she continued to focus on catching her breath. "I used too much chakra." She muttered to herself as her muscles trembled.

"Are you ok Lady Onchou?" Kai asked as he materialized next to her.

"Yeah, I just overdid it a little." She admitted.

"Who is this?" the young man asked studying the older ninja.

"This is Kai." Onchou replied as the hazel eyed man helped her stand.

"I see." Sota replied. "Well, would it be alright if you helped me for a few minutes?" the young man asked.

The violet haired girl sighed and nodded. "Ok, but I can only give you pointers. I don't have the energy to actually spar with you."

"That's fine!" the boy replied. "Anything will help!"

Onchou smiled and sat down on a nearby bench watching as the young man moved through a series of drills giving guidance here and there and praising him when he did will. "Perhaps we can fit into a village after all." She mused as he smiled at her showing how he'd mastered a difficult move she'd started teaching him during their last sparing lesson.

%$%

Gaara sighed as he sat in his office his brush gliding over the scroll in front of him. Though things were finally beginning to settle down he was still as busy as ever. He glanced out the window of his office at the sleeping village and frowned.

"Do you think you'll be able to get it all done in time?" Kankuro asked as he filed away the documents that the Kazekage had already taken care of.

"I'm going to have to be." The red head replied rolling his shoulders slightly to get rid of the tension resting there. "We're leaving tomorrow morning."

"You mean this morning." Kankuro grumbled glancing at the clock.

Gaara nodded and ran his fingers through his hair before placing his seal on the scroll in front of him and rolling it up. "It's been a while since I visited The Leaf. I can't even remember a time that I went there on personal business." He admitted as he moved to the last stack of papers in front of him. "Are you looking forward to it?" he asked his brother.

The painted faced shinobi smiled and nodded. "Of course. Our big sister is getting married after all."

Gaara smiled and nodded. "To the man who was once the brat she hated so much."

Kankuro chuckled. "It's true." He said as he took the scroll Gaara had sealed shut and placed it in a locked cabinet. "So Ryuu is going to stay here in the village?" he asked.

The sand wielder nodded. "Onchou agreed that it was best he stayed behind since he has exams coming up at the academy. Kai and Tamiki will be here to look after him too."

"So it'll be just the three of us with a couple of body guards." He remarked. "Onchou and you might actually get some time alone." He said with a suggestive wiggle of his brows.

The Kazekage blushed and then cleared his throat focusing again on his work. "We've been alone." He protested.

"Sure you have, but you haven't been _alone_." The painted faced shinobi teased. "Anyway, let's hurry. I want at least a few hours of sleep before I have to deal with your weeping fangirls wailing about how much they'll miss you."

Gaara shook his head and finished his stack handing it to his brother to file away. "We're done. Let's hurry home and get some rest." He said standing and stretching. He stepped towards the window and glanced across the village his gaze settling on the house where his lover lived a little smile coming to his face before he turned and left the office with his brother by his side.

"Please take care of yourself Lord Gaara!" a female voice exclaimed.

"We'll miss you Lord Gaara!" another cried.

"Hurry home!" came another.

"So annoying." Kankuro muttered as they walked through the town. "It's a good thing we thought to have Onchou wait for us outside the village instead of inside it."

Gaara nodded as he walked down the corridor his feet carrying him faster than normal towards the desert. As he exited the shadows, he saw Kai standing between Ryuu and a cloaked figure.

"Take care of her raccoon eyes." Ryuu demanded.

"Of course." Gaara replied. "Be sure to do well on your exams."

"I will." The boy assured him. "Kai is going to help me study."

The sand wilder nodded. "Very well then. We'll be off now. Feel free to contact us in case of emergency." He said to his counselors.

"Yes Lord Kazekage." The chief of the counsel said bowing. "Please give Lady Temari our regards."

Gaara nodded. "Come." He said leading the way across the desert. The cloaked figure leaned down and gave Ryuu a quick hug and kiss on the forehead before following behind the Kazekage.

"Who is that?" one of the guards asked.

"A new member of Gaara's personal guard." Kai replied.

"I don't recognize them." The guard replied.

The hazel eyed shinobi smiled. "That's how it should be." He said before he turned and walked with Ryuu back into the village.

After an hour of walking, Gaara adjusted his gait to fall in step with the cloaked figure behind him. "You can take that off." He said. "I'm sure it's uncomfortable."

"Are you sure?" the figure replied.

The Kazekage shook his head and reached over removing the hood revealing a curtain of violet hair. "I'm positive. Everyone here is aware of the situation."

"Oh ok." She replied blushing as he linked his fingers with hers.

He smiled at her reaction feeling his own heart race at the tinge of colors on her cheeks and the way her hand felt in his. In the village walking hand in hand with her wasn't an option due to his high profile, but here with only his closest associates nearby they could finally just be like any other new couple.

"I heard from Sota that you've been giving him and a few of the others lessons over the past few weeks." Gaara said as they moved across the desert.

Onchou nodded. "Yeah. He wouldn't really take no for an answer and the others followed him."

"I see. I'm glad you're doing well then." He said with a smile.

The violet haired girl smiled and then blushed. "It's thanks to you. I never would've imagined myself teaching anyone except Ryuu just a couple of months ago." She admitted. "Thank you."

He smiled at her. "I'm glad that I was able to help you."

She nodded and then her face fell. "I wish that there was more that I could do for you." She admitted.

Gaara squeezed her hand. "You're doing more than enough right now." He replied.

After several hours of traveling they arrived in a small village on the boarder of The Land of Rivers. Onchou's eyes widened as she recognized the layout. "This place." She murmured. "This is where I heard your song for the first time."

The red head nodded. "I know." He replied with a little smile. "I saw it in your memories."

She smiled. "I never would've guessed that the young man wearing that strange hat and white robes was you."

He smiled. "I didn't choose my outfit." He said as they walked together towards the nicest inn in the village. They walked inside and were warmly welcomed by the older couple at the counter.

"Lord Kazekage! It's so nice to see you again!" the woman exclaimed bowing deeply.

"It's good to be here again." Gaara replied with a small bow.

"The usual room I presume?" the older woman said motioning to the stairs.

"Actually, I'll be needing two rooms this time." He replied glancing at Onchou.

"Oh?" the woman replied glancing at the young woman. "I see. A new body guard?"

The violet haired teen smiled sweetly at the young woman as she sensed the disapproval in her song wondering what the source of it was until a young woman in her early twenties walked out.

"Mother, did I hear that Lord Gaara is staying with us again?" she asked her pale skin and ebony hair shining slightly in the light. Her eyes were midnight blue and Onchou felt a pang of inadequacy. She was the picture of beauty.

"Yes, it seems he has a new female body guard with him this time so please show them to the suite with two rooms." The older woman said giving Onchou another disapproving gaze.

"Oh, I see." The young woman said glancing at the violet haired girl. "Please allow me Lord Gaara." She said bowing deeply and leading him up the stairs following right away to block Onchou from staying close to him. A little frown touched her lips as she followed behind the slender girl. They arrived at the room and the young woman let them in. "If you need anything at all Lord Gaara, don't hesitate to call me. We'll bring dinner as soon as it's ready." She stopped to look Onchou over a little frown on her face and the amethyst eyed girl sighed before she followed after the rest of the men.

"It seems that Inn Keeper still wants to set you up with her daughter." Kankuro said with a chuckle.

"It seems that way." Gaara replied with a little sigh looking around the room. He found the door leading to the second smaller sleeping room and motioned for Onchou to follow him inside. She nodded and stepped inside glancing around the room as she shrugged out of her traveling cloak and laid her backpack on the ground against the wall. Her ears pricked at the sound of the door sliding shut behind her. Warm arms wrapped around her waist from behind and she sighed as they pulled her back against a solid chest. "Are you alright?" he asked her softly his warm breath ticking her ear and sending shivers down her spine.

"I'm fine." She replied leaning her head back against him. "How are you?"

"Better now that I'm able to touch you." He murmured pressing his face to her hair. "I hope you don't mind too much about the Inn Keeper and her daughter."

Onchou shrugged and turned in his arms so that she could face him seeing the concern reflected in his normally expressionless eyes. "It's alright." She assured him as she leaned forward and brushed her lips lightly across his. His eyes widened at the contact and blush colored his cheeks as she leaned away and smiled at him. "As long as I'm the one here," she murmured placing her hand over his heart. "I don't mind."

"Onchou." He murmured brushing his fingers through her hair before he pulled her face to his and pressed his mouth firmly to hers closing his eyes at the pleasant sensation. Ever so slightly he changed the angle of the kiss to suck on her full lower lip. She sighed and his grip on her tightened one arm pulling her more firmly against him as the other cupped her cheek. Tapping at the door startled them both.

"Gaara, Onchou, is everything alright in there?" Kankuro asked.

"Yes." Onchou replied quickly her cheeks coloring under her tan skin. "We'll be out in a second!" she assured him.

Gaara shook his head clearly annoyed with his brother before stepping out of the room with the violet haired girl. As they joined the others, it occurred to her that she hadn't really met the other two ninja accompanying them. "Hello, I don't think we've been properly introduced." She said studying the two men. "My name is Onchou Buki."

"I'm Yaoki." The shinobi with dark brown hair replied with a smile.

"I'm Korobi." The second one wearing the traditional head wrap many of the sand villagers tended to favor replied.

"It's nice to meet you both." She said with a smile.

Knocking at the door startled them as the young woman bowed. "I'm terribly sorry to bother you but there's a message for the Kazekage at the desk."

"I see." Gaara replied standing. "I'll be back quickly."

"Wait. Let me go with you." Kankuro said following his brother out the door.

After a few moments of silence, Onchou spoke. "So how long have you known Lord Gaara?" she asked.

"Since he was very small." Yaoki replied. "But we didn't really start getting to know him until about six years ago."

"We were assigned to work under him after he decided to enlist with the regular forces." Korobi replied. "To be honest, we were terrified of him."

"I see." Onchou replied studying the two men.

"One of our first missions was to take out a group of bandits in a town not far from here." Yaoki remarked.

"That's right!" Korobi exclaimed. "It was a joint mission with The Leaf." His face fell slightly. "He was attacked by members of our own village and we left him alone."

"Thanks to Naruto we were able to find the courage to fight alongside him and became his friends." Yaoki said smiling at the place where Gaara's traveling cloak and bag lay.

Onchou smiled at the two men. "I'm glad you're his friends." She said glancing at the same spot. "Lord Gaara is someone who rarely shows what he's feeling on the outside. Too many people take his silence as indifference or acceptance. I'm glad that he has people that he can trust."

Yaoki blinked and then smiled at her. "I see why he picked you." He said resting his head on his hands.

"It's clear you care about him deeply." Korobi agreed.

"I do." The violet haired girl replied. As the Kazekage walked back inside with Kankuro at his side.

"Is everything alright?" Onchou asked studying her lover.

He nodded. "Just a little misunderstanding about some of the instructions I left." He replied.

"I see." She said satisfied by the expression on his face as well as the calmness of his soul song. "I'm glad it wasn't anything major."

The red head nodded and settled down next to her his fingers linking with hers. She smiled at the contact and leaned lightly against his shoulder enjoying the warmth that filled her. 'So this is what true happiness feels like.' She mused.

%$%

Onchou tossed and turned caught in the throes of a nightmare as she slept.

She was standing in the trees above a small village dressed head to toe in black with Ginta one of Takuma's test subjects and master of the silent kill at her side. He was six and a half feet tall with sharp predatory yellow eyes and short reddish brown hair.

"Shall we." He said with a low rough voice.

Onchou simply nodded and leapt from the free branch where she was standing and raced through the sleeping town towards her target, the village head's compound. Her mission was simple, to kill the village headman. She slipped in through an opened window and stepped over sleeping form of a child and slipped into the main house. Within seconds she'd found her target and killed him as he slept next to his wife. With a little nod of satisfaction she slipped out of the room and was shocked to see Ginta stab the child she'd stepped over in the back with his kunai.

"What are you doing?" she demanded. "That wasn't part of the mission!" she hissed.

"She woke up when I came in her window." He replied.

"Your assignment was to stand guard outside until I returned!" she snarled as she reached for the girl frowning as she struggled to heal the wound. "Why did you follow me inside?"

"I couldn't let you have all the fun." The man complained. "Besides, I've heard you look beautiful with blood splattered on your face. I wanted to see for myself."

Her body trembled with rage. Fun? He thought that killing was fun?

"Monster!" she exclaimed glaring at the man. "Monster!"

Her eyes flew open and she sat up in bed breathing hard as she tried to shake off the lingering tendrils of her nightmare. She quickly glanced around the room and breathed a sigh of relief as she realized that she was alone. Her hands raked through her hair as she struggled to slow her breathing. Suddenly feeling confined by the walls around her, she tightened the ties on her yukata and slowly slid the door open. With light steps she strode across the shared living space and to the door that led to the terrace. Carefully as to not wake any of her male travel companions, she slipped through the door and then sat down on the railing dangling her feet over the edge. Her eyes drifted to the half lit up moon and she sighed a little as the cool night wind ruffled her hair. After a few moments, she realized she wasn't calming down fast enough and decided to sing to herself.

"Lay your head down to bed and let your slumber sweep your cares away. In your dreams, chase your wings all the way across the Milky Way. And as you rest in the nest, that was made for you. We'll caress and keep you blessed, never alone for the whole night through. Go to sleep, don't you weep. Tomorrow's going to be a brand new day."

"It seems I often find you singing." Gaara said from behind her.

She jumped at the sound of his voice and began to fall backwards only to be caught in his strong arms. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to wake you." She stammered blushing at the way his arms wrapped around her waist just below her bust bushing the underside of her breasts. It felt so much more intimate with her wearing a thin yukata as opposed to her normal ninja gear especially considering she'd been binding her chest from the moment she'd realized she'd hit puberty knowing that she basically lived in a den of wolves. Even now that she was out of that dangerous situation she still kept her chest bound except for when she slept.

"It's no problem." He assured her helping her side back to her feet though he didn't release his hold on her. "Is something bothering you?"

"Just a couple of demons stopping by to haunt me." She replied feeling her heart pound out of control in her chest at the warmth of his body on his back that seemed so much closer with the thinness of the fabric between them.

"I see." He replied. "Is there anything I can do to help?"

"What you're doing right now is helping." She replied lifting her hands to rest on his arms.

"Onchou." He murmured in her ear his breath sending shivers down her spine. Her heart pounded almost painfully when his lips brushed the skin of her neck just below her ear. "You look so beautiful in the moonlight." He whispered pulling her tighter against him.

She shuddered in his arms at both the huskiness of his tone, and the sensation of his lips moving against her neck and turned in his arms so she could face him. Her eyes widened at the spark of heat she saw in his pale eyes that sent heat roaring to life in her belly. "Gaara." She whispered before she stretched up on her toes and pressed her lips to his. He responded almost instantly as he pulled her flush against him and moved his lips against hers more heated than she'd ever felt him before. A little gasp escaped her lips when she felt his tongue sweep out to run along the seam of her lips requesting entrance. Shyly, she responded opening her mouth for him and was surprised by the throbbing sensation that began to build between her legs as his tongue slipped inside her mouth to tangle with hers. Instinctively she moved her tongue against his and she heard a low sound rumble in his throat before he pushed her up against the railing of the terrace forcing their bodies even closer together as his hands began to roam over her body even as her own hands dove into his thick, dark red locks. They finally broke apart for air and she opened her eyes and found that his face was just as flushed as hers as he panted.

"Onchou." He breathed stroking her face with his hand. She could see in his eyes the depth of love he felt for her and it made her heart soar to know that the man she loved felt the same way about her.

"Gaara." She murmured cupping his face with her palms. "I love you so very much."

He sighed and leaned his forehead against hers. "I love you too." He whispered before he placed a kiss on her forehead. "Come. Let's go back to bed."

She nodded and walked with him back inside kissing him once more before she slipped inside her room and laid down on her futon. "How on earth am I supposed to sleep now?" she muttered to herself before she pulled the covers over her head.

 **P.S. Sorry again for how ridiculously late this update is. Thanks for all the reviews and views!**


	4. Chapter 4

Gaara slipped into his futon and tossed and turned as he remembered the feeling of Onchou's warm body against his. The heat that had pooled in his belly as he kissed her and the sensation of her body pressed up against his was maddening. Until Onchou had come along, he'd never been interested in women or sex. He'd gone through puberty while still in his bloodthirsty state of mind for the most part and had turned any sexual urges into the desire to kill. Even after he'd mellowed out, thanks to Naruto's interference, he'd been busy trying to prove to those around him that he wasn't a killer or a liability to the village as well as avoiding constant assassination attempts. By the time those had finally settled down he'd been named Kazekage and simply didn't have the time or desire to entertain any sexually driven thoughts. Now, he was twenty and for the first time he was finally experiencing what it felt like to have the thoughts of sex confound his mind. He bit his lip and hissed in frustration as his imagination ran wild conjuring up explicit images of her lying naked beneath him, her violet hair splayed around her head like a dark halo, her lips parted as she breathed his name.

"Ugh." He groaned as he curled up into a ball half disgusted with himself and half enthralled by the thoughts that plagued him. He loved Onchou and she loved him that much he knew for certain. However, he also knew that she'd nearly been raped at least once and that she'd dealt with sexual harassment for the majority of her life. The last thing he wanted to do was betray her trust in him by pushing her sexually. "Onchou." He murmured as he finally drifted asleep.

%&%

"Are you alright Gaara?" Onchou asked as they walked through the thickening forest of The Land of Fire.

"I'm alright." He assured her for the fourth time that day. She was worried about him and he couldn't really blame her. Though he knew she did her best to contain her ability to hear soul songs out of her desire to respect the privacy those around her, she could no doubt sense the tension in his and wanted to alleviate it. He wasn't about to tell her that he'd had wet dreams about her since the night he'd kissed her under the moonlight and that his guilt about those dreams was what was causing the tension.

"If you say so." She replied before she lifted a hand to catch a leaf that had fallen from one of the trees. "It's so much greener here than in The Land of Wind." She murmured as she studied the green frond.

"Do you prefer it?" Gaara asked.

The violet haired girl shrugged. "It wouldn't say that. It's just different." She cast her eyes forward as she heard a song filled with bloodlust brush past her senses. Immediately her hand went to her sword as she activated her advanced hearing trying to pinpoint the song.

"What is it?" Kankuro asked noting her posture.

"Someone filled with bloodlust is nearby." She replied quickly as she continued to listen for the person's ware bouts. Her hand left her sword and went to her weapons pouch pulling a kunai free as the other guards tensed forming a lose circle. "There!" she exclaimed throwing her kunai into the branches of a nearby tree.

"Damn!" a man's voice hissed as the ninja tumbled down to the ground clutching his leg where the kunai protruded from the flesh of his thigh. "How could you tell?" he demanded glaring at the violet haired young woman.

"The bloodlust seeping from your being is almost tangible." She replied wrinkling her nose. "Now who sent you?"

"I'm not telling you that." He replied with a little smirk. "That is, unless you can persuade me. Fifteen minutes alone with you would suffice I think." He purred his eyes roaming over her figure greedily. His smirk vanished when he suddenly found himself slammed against the nearest tree with sand around his throat choking him viciously.

"Would you care to rethink your answer?" Gaara asked his tone rough as his eyes flashed with some of the darkness from his younger days.

The rouge ninja shuddered at the dark look in the Kazekage's eyes and nodded. "Lord Ginzo." He rasped. "He hired me to assassinate the Kazekage."

Kankuro sighed. "That damn old vulture." He growled. "He's going to pay for this."

"What did he offer you?" The Kazekage demanded.

"Money of course." The ninja replied before he looked at Onchou. "He also said I could have the girl."

The amethyst eyed girl snorted. "Of course he did."

"What should we do with him?" Korobi asked as he bound the man with chakra strings.

"Leave him there." Gaara said as released his sand's hold on the man. "We should hurry to the leaf now so that we can send a message to the village."

"Agreed. Lead the way." Kankuro said as they leapt into the trees.

%&%

Gaara glanced at Onchou out of the corner of his eye as she moved through the trees beside him. He'd been worried that she might not be able to keep up since he'd never traveled with her this way before but he quickly learned that his fears were ungrounded. Looking at her now was like looking at a different person. Her eyes were sharp and he could see glimpses of silver when her hair whipped in the wind to reveal her ears, showing that she was amplifying her hearing. She moved swiftly, yet gracefully through the trees and he noted that she used her arms more than most of the shinobi he knew.

"Why do you move like that through the trees?" he asked her after over an hour of traveling.

She blinked in surprise and then shrugged. "When I was with Takuma, I had to keep up with grown men when I was still just a small girl. My strides were nowhere near long enough to match theirs so I had to use my arms more to keep up. It kind of just became a habit."

"I see. Well, as long as it works for you." He remarked as she grabbed another branch and swung forward.

"How long do you think you can keep going?" Kankuro asked her when they stopped to take a breather about an hour and a half after night fall. "We could probably reach the leaf in five more hours at this pace but that will mean we'll have been going for twelve hours straight."

"Don't worry about me." She replied as she sipped on her water. "I'll be just fine."

"Very well. Just let someone know if it becomes too much." Gaara replied touching her on the shoulder. "I'm sorry about all this. I wanted to show you more of The Land of Fire at a leisurely pace."

Onchou smiled at him. "There's always next time." She replied as she slipped her bottle back into her pack. "Don't worry about it."

The corners of his lips turned up slightly at her words before he nodded. "Let's go." Kankuro said understanding the silent order.

They moved through the trees at an even faster pace weaving through the trees in the darkness towards The Leaf village and arrived at the front gates just as early morning light began to lighten the sky. They dropped to the ground and Onchou stared in awe at the village paying particular attention to the cliff that proudly displayed the faces of the former and current Hokage.

"Wow." She murmured softly.

Gaara would've chuckled at her reaction had the tension not been as high as they strode through the gates.

"Who goes there?" a tired sounding voice asked from the guard station.

Onchou studied the two men sitting there. "Only two guards?"

"They have more natural protection from the forest." Kankuro replied as they walked to the station.

"I see." She replied as the two men's eyes widened as Gaara stepped forward.

"Lord Kazekage!" one of them stammered. "We weren't expecting you and your party for another couple of days."

"Yes I know." He replied. "Something came up. I need to go to the Hokage's office right away."

"Yes of course." The second one stammered. "Go ahead."

Gaara nodded and then turned to his companions. "Go on ahead to the Nara household. I'm sure they won't turn you away." His gaze then settled on Onchou who shifted nervously. "There is nothing to fear here. This is the village where Naruto and your other friends live." He reached out and touched her on the top of her head. "I'll be there soon." He said before he vanished in a swirling of sand.

"Let's go." Kankuro said urging the young woman forward.

She nodded and followed behind him shyly as she glanced around the empty streets. It wasn't like Suna filled with similar looking buildings made of stone. These buildings looked more like the buildings she was used to though they were much closer together than a typical village. She followed Kankuro towards what felt like the more privileged part of town and through the front gate of a large looking estate. As they approached the entrance a man who looked very similar to Shikamaru with two slashing scars on his face appeared at the door.

"Kankuro? This is a surprise. We weren't expecting you for another couple of days." He said in a low voice.

"Sorry Lord Nara." The painted faced shinobi said bowing slightly. "We apologize for the intrusion, certain circumstances occurred during our travels that made us arrive ahead of schedule."

"Oh?" the older man replied raising a brow. "What kind of circumstances?"

"An attempt on Lord Gaara's life." Kankuro replied.

Shikaku's eyes widened slightly. "I see. Well, please come inside. To have arrived over a day earlier than anticipated and at this hour means that you likely traveled all night."

"Thank you very much." Kankuro said as they walked inside.

Onchou followed behind and slipped out of her shoes like she saw the others do and clasped her hands in front of her as she tried to mask her discomfort. Being around new people was frightening to her still and she could sense that the man leading them through the house was very powerful. A little tension eased out of her when she sensed Shikamaru and Temari's presence nearby as the man led them to a series of guest rooms.

"Feel free to use these. I'm assuming Lord Gaara will arrive after taking care of his business?" he asked Kankuro.

"Yes. He had to send an urgent message to Suna but should arrive shortly." He replied.

Shikaku nodded and glanced at the other members of the party. "It's good to see you two again." He said nodding to Yaoki and Koriobi.

"Thank you Lord Nara." They replied as they bowed.

The older man's gaze then fell upon Onchou. "Who are you?" he asked studying her.

"I'm Onchou Buki." She replied bowing low. "It's a pleasure to meet you Lord Nara." She said.

"I see. So you're the young woman my son and his wife to be spoke of. Welcome." He said offering her a little smile.

"Thank you very much." She said bowing once more.

Shikaku chuckled and turned to Kankuro. "She's a nervous one."

The puppeteer nodded. "Only at first." He assured their host with a little smile.

"Very well. Please get some rest before breakfast." The leaf shinobi said before he left.

"We'll take this room." Kankuro said placing his things inside the middle room.

Onchou nodded and took the room closest to the edge of the estate and laid her things down on the ground. She picked up a folded futon laying in the corner of the room rolling it out. After she'd arranged it, she knelt down in the middle of it and folded her hands in her lap and closed her eyes as she deactivated her advanced hearing a little sigh escaping her lips as the world around her quieted significantly. Her body and mind were tired both from the physical effort of traveling for so long at such a quick pace and from her worries about Gaara and his safety. Even now, though her body was begging her to lay down and go to sleep, her mind wouldn't allow it. Until he was back where she could see him, she refused to allow herself to rest. Her eyes widened when she heard his voice along with Shikaku's and a little sigh of relief fell from her lips.

"Please make yourself at home." The Nara clan head said from the hallway. "Rest as long as you need to Lord Gaara."

"Thank you very much Shikaku." The Kazekage replied in his low deliberate drawl before the Nara head left.

Onchou wasn't terribly surprised when the door to her room slid open and Gaara walked inside before closing it gently behind him. "Why aren't you sleeping?" he asked softly as he approached her.

"I was worried." She replied simply blushing she looked at the ground. He was more than capable of taking care of himself and she knew that so her worries were foolish, but she couldn't really help it.

He sighed as he knelt in front of her and reached out to stroke her cheek. "You silly girl." He murmured. "As you can see, I'm perfectly alright so please rest. I'm sure you're exhausted from traveling and using your powers for so long."

She nodded and leaned into his touch closing her eyes. "Gaara, why are you so tense around me?" she asked softly. He stiffened a little at her words and she quickly covered his hand with her own before he could pull it away. "I love you. You can tell me anything, any fears or worries. I'll accept all of them. Just tell me what's wrong."

He swallowed hard at her words. Her love and devotion was clear in her expression, in the way she held his hand. How could he tell her that it was his own lust that was bothering him? If he asked, he was sure she'd give him exactly what he craved but he didn't want to force her.

"I'm sorry." He said softly. "I not quite ready to talk about it."

She nodded and smiled gently at him. "I understand." She replied. "When you're ready, I'll be here."

Gaara nodded and leaned forward laying his lips on hers. She twined her arms around his neck and sighed as his own hands reached forward to hold her waist. He felt warmth building in his belly and quickly pulled away before it could turn into an ache in his groin. "Sleep now." He told her as he laid his forehead against hers. "There's a lot to see in The Leaf Village so get some rest so we can go see it together."

She smiled. "Alright." She said before she moved closer to him hugging him tightly. "I love you Gaara." She whispered in his ear before planting a kiss just below it on his neck.

It took every ounce of willpower he possessed to resist the temptation to throw her down onto the floor and cover her body with his own. To bind her wrists to the floor with his sand and let his hands remove the fabric separating them. He clenched his eyes shut as he tried to will the graphic images from his mind. Instead, he pushed her away desperate to get a handle on his urges. "Gaara?" she asked her eyes narrowing slightly, her expression confused and a little hurt.

"I'm sorry." He muttered touching her shoulders gently. "I must be more tired than I thought. Please don't worry about it. Just get some sleep."

"Ok." She replied offering him a small smile. It was fake and he knew it and it was his fault. Without another word she slipped into her futon and laid down turning away from him as he left the room.

He stalked into the room where his brother was already laying down and cursed as he slipped off his jacket and laid his gourd down. "Damn it all." He muttered as he laid down bracing his hands under his head.

"What's wrong with you?" his brother asked rolling over. "You're usually in a much better mood after seeing Onchou but lately you've been acting strange around her. What happened between you two?"

Gaara sighed and briefly reached out with his senses towards Onchou. When he was satisfied that she was asleep, he decided to talk. "I feel like I'm losing my mind." He admitted. "Every time I touch her it feels like it's not enough. I want more… More of her." He said as he flung his arm over his eyes.

Kankuro's eyes widened and then he sighed shaking his head. "I see. Well that's only natural considering you love her. So what's the problem?"

The sand wielder's eyes widened at the question. "What do you mean? There are so many problems with that kind of thinking. It's not respectful of me to think of her that way and she's been sexually harassed for most of her life."

The puppeteer sighed. "Well, I'm no expert but if you're thinking about her in that way because you want to deepen your bond and because you love her, then I think it's a good thing."

"Yeah but…" Gaara replied.

"It's also not fair to her if you're making the decision to distance yourself without talking to her about it first." He replied. "You're not like the other guys that hurt her in the past and she knows that, otherwise she wouldn't be with you at all. For all you know, she might feel the same way about you but unless you talk to her about it. You'll never know. Unless you use that soul link jutsu."

The sand wielder's eyes widened. "What if it scares her off?" he asked.

"Now you're under estimating her." Kankuro chuckled. "I seriously doubt she'd run off when you're being honest with her. Have a little more faith in her, she's the one you chose after all."

"You're right." Gaara replied. "Thank you Kankuro."

"No problem little brother." The sand shinobi replied.

%*%

Onchou groaned as she found herself caught in the throes of her dream. She was in a dark room and large hands were stroking over her body. She arched into the touch and sighed as warm lips peppered kisses along her collar bone.

"Onchou." A low voice murmured. She reached for her lover and smiled as Gaara looked down at her his eyes blazing with lust mixed with the softness of love. She framed his face in her hands and smiled at him.

"I love you." She murmured. "So much."

"I love you too." He replied as he lowered his body to hers and she gasped at the sensation of his skin on hers.

The sound of rapping on the door startled her and she sat bolt upright her hand instinctively going for her sword.

"Morning sunshine." Temari called out through the door. "Breakfast is ready."

"Right." She muttered scrubbing her hands over her face. "What a dream." She said as she stumbled to her feet. Her hands pushed open the door and she was nearly toppled over as Temari wrapped her arms around her.

"I'm so glad you decided to come!" she exclaimed. "Sorry you had to hurry here but we'll have fun while we're here. This is your first time in the leaf village isn't it? They have a bathhouse that's amazing here. I'll get together some of the girls and we'll go tonight ok?"

Onchou nodded her spirits lifting at the girl's happy attitude as she led her into the dining room. Shikamaru snickered as she walked inside. "I knew you'd come."

"Oh?" she replied as she sat down next to Temari. "Is that a good thing?"

"Of course it is." He replied with a smile. "We're happy to have you here."

She smiled at him and then looked down as Gaara and Kankuro entered the room. She took a deep breath as the Kazekage settled down next to her and glanced at him out of the corner of her eye. Things between them had been so awkward lately especially after this morning. She'd just kissed him on the neck and he'd acted like her mouth was poisoned.

"So what exactly happened out there?" Shikamaru asked as they ate.

"We were traveling when Onchou sensed the presence of a man with foul intentions and picked him out of the trees." Kankuro explained. "He said he'd been hired by one of the former council members to assassinate Gaara."

"Well that's annoying." Temari snarled. "Thanks for looking after my little brother." She said touching Onchou's hand.

"It was no problem." She replied with a little smile.

"How were you able to sense his presence?" Shikaku asked.

Onchou tucked her hair behind her ear exposing the pointed tip and black swirling tattoos. "This is a special ability passed down through my clan. My ears allow me to hear much more than the average person." She explained.

"It's on par with the Uchiha's sharringan." Shikamaru explained.

"I see. Why haven't I heard of this power?" the older Nara asked.

"It was kept secret for the most part." She replied. "Also, I'm the only member of my clan left."

"I see." Shikaku replied. "Well, it's a good thing you were there."

"Thank you." The violet haired girl said bowing slightly.

As they finished up, there was a loud commotion at the front gate. "Shikamaru! Is Gaara there?!" a loud, rough, voice called out.

"That idiot is so loud." Shikamaru muttered as he stood up.

"Is that Naruto?" Onchou asked her face brightening slightly.

"Of course it's Naruto. No one else would be dumb enough to be that loud this early in the morning." The Nara heir muttered as he left the room.

The violet haired girl rose from where she sat and followed him to where the blonde shinobi stood in the entry way. His blue eyes lit up as he saw her.

"Onchou!" he exclaimed bounding forward to give her a brief but warm hug. "I'm so glad you came!"

"Thanks Naruto." She replied with a smile.

"We'll all have to get together tonight!" he said as Gaara followed by Kankuro and Temari walked to the entrance.

"Temari is already talking about getting the girls together tonight at the bathhouse. We could get the guys together too." Shikamaru suggested.

"That's a great idea." Naruto agreed as the small group made their way outside.

"Where's Sakura?" Onchou asked after a few minutes of walking.

"Oh, she and Sasuke left the village shortly after our mission to Suna." He replied. "She'll be sad that she missed you."

The violet haired girl shook her head. "It's no big deal, I'll see her again soon I'm sure. Besides, if they're traveling together that's a good sign that the idiot Uchiha finally got his feelings figured out." She replied with a smile. "I'm happy for her."

Naruto smiled at her and then glanced at Gaara who was walking next to the amethyst eyed teen his fingers loosely linked with hers. "So what about you two? Did you get your feelings sorted out?" he asked grinning when the newer couple blushed and glanced away.

"Almost." Kankuro answered for them. "They're in that annoying tension stage. You know the one, where you want to lock them in a bedroom alone for a day."

Onchou's blush deepened as Gaara's face turned so dark you could hardly see the mark on his forehead. "Don't tease them so much." Temari said nudging her brother. "Our precious baby brother is new to this."

"Easy for you to say." The painted faced shinobi muttered. "You don't live with him."

"Anyway…" Shikamaru said clearing his throat. "Since this is Onchou's first time to the leaf village, we should show her around."

The violet haired girl blinked and raised her hand gently. "You don't have to fret over me. I don't want to be any trouble."

"It's no trouble to show a friend around your hometown." Naruto replied with a toothy grin. "Lighten up ok? It's exciting so show a friend your favorite things about your village."

She smiled and nodded as her gaze was drawn to the stone cliff with the faces of the Hokage on it. "That's pretty remarkable." She murmured. "Were those carved by hand or were they made using an earth style jutsu?"

"They were created using an earth style jutsu." Naruto replied as he looked up at the faces. "Mine will be up there next."

The violet haired girl smiled at her friend. "I'm sure you're right." She said as they continued to walk.

"I can't believe I'm doing this again." Onchou muttered as she stripped off her clothes and wrapped a towel around herself glancing around self-consciously as the other girl's changed.

"Don't stress." Temari said with a smile as she touched her on the shoulder. "It won't be any different from the last time we did this." She said leading the way to the woman's bath.

"Easy for you to say." The amethyst eyed girl muttered as she entered the steamy room. She felt a bit better after sinking into the water and glanced around. She recognized most of the girls. Hinata, TenTen, and Ino were all present and accounted for.

"It's good to see you again Onchou." Hinata said as she sank into the water next to her. "I'm glad you were able to come."

"Thank you." She replied with a little smile. The blue haired girl's presence was certainly comforting.

"How have you been doing?" TenTen asked. "You and Ryuu were accepted into Suna right? I heard things were a mess after Gaara disbanded the council."

"Things are going much smoother now." Onchou replied. "The new council is settling into their duties well. Ryuu entered the ninja academy in Suna and I'm still trying to figure out my place."

"Yeah right. Your place is right next to Lord Gaara and you know it." Ino said stretching her arms above her head as she leaned back against the edge of the bath.

Onchou blushed and cringed as all of the girl's eyes fell on her. "Speaking of my brother…." Temari said grinning at her. "How are things going between you two?"

The violet haired girl bit her lip nervously before speaking. "Alright I guess. We're dating now."

"So the Kazekage is officially off the market." Ino mused. "I bet Suna had the most rainfall in years the day his fan girls found out."

"Most of them don't know actually." Onchou said. "We've kept our relationship secret for the most part. Gaara said that he wanted to wait until things cooled down a little regarding the council and everything else before he made our relationship public."

"That sounds like something my brother would to." Temari admitted. "If it ever starts to bother you or his fangirls get too clingy, tell him. He's never been in this kind of relationship so he won't know you're insecure unless you let him know."

The violet haired girl nodded. "Ok. To be honest, the past few days have been… awkward between us." She admitted pulling her knees up to her chest. "He shies away from almost any form of physical contact." Her hand ran lightly over her arm covering and then gripping the brand. "I'm afraid he's dissatisfied with me physically or something."

Ino, TenTen, and Temari both exchanged a look as Hinata touched her on the shoulder.

"I doubt it's that." Temari said leaning back to let the water wash over her neck. "He's probably worried about something and is trying to protect you from it." She glanced at the violet haired teen. "My little brother loves you, just give him a little time."

Onchou smiled. "Thanks Temari. So how are the wedding preparations going?" she asked.

The sand shinobi chuckled. "Shikamaru's mom is having the time of her life planning everything. I haven't had to do much of anything." Her face fell a little. "I only wish that my mother could be here to help." She admitted.

Hinata and TenTen both reached out to place a hand on the sand shinobi's shoulder.

"I'm sure she'd thrilled wherever she is." TenTen assured her.

"You're marrying the smartest guy in the leaf after all." Ino said with a little smirk. "He's not bad looking either. Not as handsome as my Sai though."

"Give it a rest Ino." TenTen muttered as she rolled her eyes.

Gaara sighed as he sat in the large tub of hot water. He really wasn't a fan of them still but the company was worth the discomfort. He'd come a long way as far as social interaction went and challenging himself in this way was a good experience for him in spite of everything.

"So how do you feel about being the first man to be taken out of this herd of manliness?" Naruto teased as he leaned back against the bath.

The shadow shinobi shrugged. "I just don't want to waste any time playing the dating game when I've already got the queen in my grasp." He replied. "I'm not like you and Sai either. Temari and I don't have the luxury of being from the same village. The only way I can keep her by my side is by marrying her."

"That's true." Sai agreed touching his chin. "It would be troublesome to keep a long distance relationship going."

Naruto nodded. "True enough." He agreed. "Even Sasuke decided that a long distance relationship was no good. That's why he took Sakura with him when he left the village this time."

"That guy. Do you think he'll ever stop wandering?" Shikamaru asked.

The whiskered shinobi nodded. "I think so. Especially now that he's with Sakura. She'll ground him." He then turned his attention to the Kazekage. "So what's going on between you and Onchou?" he asked pointedly.

Gaara sighed. He'd known the question was coming from the moment he'd set foot in the bathhouse. "We're together." He replied simply.

"We all figured that much out." Kiba replied rolling his eyes.

"Ryuu isn't here to drown you like last time, so just tell us." Naruto urged.

"There's nothing to tell." The sand wielder replied. "All we've done is kissed."

"I see. So you're waiting until marriage to do anything else like Naruto and Hinata." Sai noted touching his chin. "That kind of pure relationship seems to be more popular than I thought."

The sand wielder's eyes widened. "What do you mean?"

"It's what Hinata wants so I respect her wishes." The blue eyed shinobi said with a sigh. "It's awful to wait but I love her so it's worth it."

Shikamaru snickered. "Temari was the one that decided to take the wheel in our physical relationship. I just held on for dear life."

"I heard. It sounded to me like she was the one holding on to you" Kankuro muttered making the shadow wielder blush.

"What did you and Ino decide?" Kiba asked the painter.

The pale shinobi blushed and looked down. "We've decided to take that step soon." He admitted. "She wants everything to be perfect so I'm going to do my best."

Shikamaru snickered. "Good luck with that. She's a real sadist."

"You'd know." Naruto teased. "You're future wife is one too. I see those scratch marks on your back."

"Shut up." The brunette snapped though no one missed the little smirk on his lips as he touched his sexy battle scars.

Sai though touched his chin. "I wonder who dominates in Sasuke and Sakura's relationship." He mused aloud.

"I don't want to think about that." Kiba complained.

"That's a really good question." Naruto agreed. "I mean most people would say Sasuke but I don't know if Sakura would just submit you know?"

"I don't know if I'd agree with that." Shikamaru replied. "I think Sasuke is the only person that could ever dominate her."

Gaara ignored the rest of the conversation as he became lost in thought. His friends had all decided on their physical relationships together with their partners. Kankuro was right, it wasn't fair for him to make all of the decisions regarding their physical relationship on his own. After all, Naruto never would've known about Hinata's desire to wait until marriage unless he'd talked to her about it at some point. How could he respect her boundaries if he didn't know where the line was? His name snapped him out of his train of thought and he glanced up at his friends.

"What was that?" he asked.

"I was wondering if you expect any other assassins to come after you." Shikamaru repeated.

The Kazekage shrugged. "It's a possibility. Many of the old council members are bitter about their dismissal."

"Hang in there." Naruto encouraged his friend. "Suna will be able to move forward in a good way now that those creeps are gone."

"I agree." Kankruo replied. "Everything you've done is for the good of the village."

%*%

Onchou sighed as she sat on the porch of the Nara estate watching the moon. She'd been plagued by hot dreams again and was frustrated by the lack of private time she'd been able to spend with Gaara to find out exactly what was bothering him. He'd told her after they'd left the baths that he wanted to talk with her about some things but he'd been called away soon after by the Hokage and hadn't returned until she'd already gone to her room for bed. She sensed a warm, hot presence nearing her and didn't bother to turn to see who it was as they settled down next to her.

"Why aren't you sleeping?" Gaara asked.

"I could ask you the same thing." She replied as she laid her head on his shoulder.

"True enough." He said as he slipped his arm around her.

"How did your meeting go?" she asked.

"Well enough." He replied. "Lord Kakashi said he's going to increase the security around the village until we leave."

She noted the subtle heaviness in his tone and lifted her hand to rest it on his thigh. "Don't feel guilty. Suna would do the same if he came to the village to visit. It's only natural with two leaders of the shinobi world in one place."

He nodded and then took a deep breath as waves of nervousness shimmered in his soul song. After a few moments he spoke. "Onchou, I was wondering about our relationship." He said nervously trying to get the words to come out without sounding awkward.

"What about it?" she replied glancing up at him.

"I was wondering about how you feel about… physical intimacy." He said his face flushing at the words.

She blushed as she immediately realized his meaning and nervously tucked her hair behind her ears. "Oh that." She muttered. "I guess I never really thought about it before." She admitted. "Why are you asking?"

"I just want to know where your boundaries lie." He replied. "I've been distancing myself from you because I didn't want to cross the line with you physically but I realized today that I didn't know where the line was so there was no way for me to know if I'd crossed it or not."

"So that's why you've been anxious around me." She mused. A little giggle escaped her lips. "Thank goodness."

"What do you mean by that?" Gaara asked.

She blushed and looked down. "I was afraid it was because you weren't satisfied with me or something."

He turned and pressed a gentle kiss to her temple. "I'm sorry for making you feel insecure." He murmured.

Onchou nodded. "It's ok. I'm just glad I know the reason why now." She looked down at her hands. "To be completely honest, I don't know where that line is myself. You know what happened to me in The Land of Pearls and the kind of environment I was in until recently which is probably why you've been anxious about that line in the first place right?" He nodded and she sighed and hung her head. "I'm terribly sorry for this, but I don't think I'll know where the line is until we find it by accident." She admitted as she turned to look at him. "I've never been in a relationship like this before and I don't know how deep the scars are. All I do know is that I love you and I want…" she blushed as her voice lowered so much that she knew he'd have to strain to hear her. "I want you. I'm just afraid to disappoint you."

He wrapped his arms around her and laid his head on her shoulder. "Thank you for telling me." He replied. "Don't worry about disappointing me. I love you and we'll cross that bridge when we get there. I'll accept all of your insecurities and fears. Even if it takes a lifetime, I'll wait until you're ready."

She smiled, tears pricking at the corner of her eyes as she lifted her hands to stoke over his hair. "Thank you Gaara." She murmured. "I love you."

"I know." He replied as he leaned down and pressed his lips to hers. It was a sweet, affectionate kiss filled with love and tenderness. When they broke apart, he leaned his forehead against hers and stroked his hand over her cheek. "Let's go back to bed. Tomorrow is the day before the wedding so lots of preparations need to be made. I'm sure we'll either be asked to help or chased out of the house first thing in the morning."

"You're right." She replied as he stood and offered his hand to her. He walked her to her room and kissed her once more. A longer deeper kiss that had her sighing and melting against him as his own hands dove into her long violet colored tresses.

"See you tomorrow." He assured her before leaving her to go to his own room to sleep.


	5. Chapter 5

Onchou shifted nervously as she looked at the dress Ino held up for her with a grin plastered on her face. Hinata stood next to her and smiled encouragingly at the violet haired girl.

"Are you sure?" she muttered as she studied the attire. "I've never worn anything like that before."

"Which is why you should." The blonde insisted. "It's a special occasion and it'll be a chance for you to knock Gaara's socks off." She said with a wink.

The dark skinned girl blushed. "I still don't know." She muttered.

"Relax." Ino insisted. "You'll look great in this, trust me. Besides, she asked you to sing at the reception after the ceremony right? You'll want to look good on stage."

Onchou sighed. "Fine. Do what you want with me."

Ino smiled and nodded to Hinata. "That's what I wanted to hear! Just leave it to us!"

#$#

Gaara smiled as he stood with his brother and sister in the room where the last of the bride's preparations were taking place.

"You look lovely." Gaara said as he embraced his sister gently.

"Thank you." She replied with a little smile blush darkening her already rouge tinged cheeks.

"Mom and Dad would both be proud." Kankuro assured her as he embraced her as well.

Temari smiled. "I hope so." She said her hands shaking slightly. She looked lovely in a kimono made of white silk with a thick red obi secured across her waist. Her hair was pulled up and away from her face with red spider lilies tucked into the blonde knot.

The boys were dressed in more traditional clothes from Suna, Gaara wearing long robes in white while Kankuro wore a similar style in black and his face was free of his normal purple paint.

"We'll see you at the ceremony." Gaara assured her as the brothers approached the doors.

They left the room and the Kazekage blushed as he imagined Onchou dressed in a similar fashion wondering what flower would look best against her violet hair.

"Thinking about another wedding already?" Kankuro asked softly as they moved to their places at the head of the room where the families of the bride and groom were supposed to sit.

Gaara sighed and shook his head before he scanned the room for a pair of amethyst colored eyes. He frowned a little when he didn't see any as he and Kankuro took their seats.

"Don't worry. She'll come with the girls." The puppeteer assured him. "You can't really see her until the ceremony ends anyway so just be patient."

Gaara nodded and breathed a sigh of relief minutes later when he sensed her chakra enter the room. He glanced backwards catching a glimpse of violet hair before the ceremony began. He couldn't help but smile as the couple made their vows and drank with Kankuro standing in for their parents. His older sister who was normally so tough and guarded looked absolutely serene as she smiled at her husband with softness in her eyes that the Kazekage had rarely seen. The normally apathetic and aloof Shikamaru smiled at his new wife often through the ceremony and then kissed her soundly when it was over inciting a series of whistles and cheers from the crowd.

The newlywed couple left first and he followed soon after with the rest of the family towards the reception hall. He frowned when he felt Onchou's chakra leave so soon but realized that it was because Temari had asked her to sing and she likely needed to prepare. Pushing his irritation aside, he fell in step behind his brother and beside Kakashi, the Hokage.

"So it begins." The older man said with a sigh. "The new younger generation is beginning to lay roots of their own."

Gaara nodded. "To think that only a few short years ago, those two were fighting one another in the arena here. Now they've just taken their wedding vows."

Kakashi nodded. "I hope you're not too angry with us for taking one of your best Kunoichi."

The red head chuckled. "Even if I was, there's nothing that could be done. There isn't a man in Suna who loves her like he does and as her brother, that's what's most important to me."

The experienced shinobi smiled beneath his mask. "Indeed, he does love her. You recently acquired Onchou thanks to us so does that make us even?"

Gaara nodded. "It does."

The reception and banquet were grand with foods of all kinds covering the tables. Though he still hadn't been able to get a decent look at Onchou he was content watching and listening to the people around him. He'd never seen his sister look more happy than he did now as she leaned against her new husband from time to time a constant smile playing on her lips. Shikamaru looked just as happy as he talked and ate stealing little kisses and blushing when Naruto caught him and teased him about it. The meal finally ended and the attention was turned to the stage. Gaara's eyes widened and his jaw dropped as Onchou stepped on stage gripping a microphone tightly in her hands. She was dressed in a short sleeved, maxi style dress that brushed the floor in black with a wine red hemline that crept part way up the skirt fading into the black. A long slit was cut into the skirt showing glimpses of her bronze leg as she shifted nervously. Her hair was done up in a loose bun with a few curled strands hanging down to frame her face. He'd never seen her wear anything so feminine during the time they'd been together and he was star struck by the sight.

"Hello." She said softly into the microphone getting the party goers attention. "Temari and Shikamaru, it's time for you first dance as husband and wife."

Gaara watched as the couple stood and walked to the dance floor. Onchou turned and sat at the piano set up on the stage adjusting the microphone in the stand and took a deep breath. Her fingers began to dance across the keys and she soon began to sing.

"Everybody needs inspiration, everybody needs a song. A beautiful melody when the night's so long. Cause there is no guarantee that this life is easy. Yeah when my world is falling apart when there's no light to break up the dark that's when I, I I look at you. When the waves are flooding the shore and I can't find my way home anymore that's when I, I I look at you."

The couple spun in a gentle unhurried circle on the dance floor wrapped in each other's arms with Temari resting her cheek on Shikamaru's chest over his heart as he held her close.

"When I look at you, I see forgiveness. I see the truth. You love me for who I am like the stars hold the moon. Right there is where I belong and I know I'm not alone. Yeah when my world is falling apart and there's no light to break up the dark that's when I, I I look at you. When the waves are flooding the shore and I can't find my way home anymore that's when I, I I look at you."

Shikamaru leaned down and pressed a gentle kiss to his bride's head and she sighed in response moving even closer to the shadow shinobi until there was no distance between them.

"You appear just like a dream to me. Just like kaleidoscope colors that cover me. All I need, every breath that I breathe don't you know you're beautiful, yeah, yeah, yeah. When the waves are flooding the shore and I can't find my way home anymore that's when I, I I look at you. I look at you. I look at you. Yeah, whoa-oh. You appear just like a dream to me."

Temari lifted her face and their lips met in a gentle, heartfelt kiss that seemed to warm the entire room. Gaara smiled at the couple and then glanced at the stage where Onchou bowed and then offered the microphone to the young man from the band that was going to play for the rest of the reception and descended the stairs of the stage. Temari reached out and hugged her as Shikamaru bowed before they pushed her towards the blushing Kazekage.

"Hello Lord Gaara." The violet haired teen said bowing to him. "Did you enjoy the performance?" she asked tucking a strand of hair behind her ear nervously.

He smiled at her nervousness and formal speech and reached out to her tipping her head up with a gentle pressure of his fingers until her amethyst eyes met his own sea green gaze. "Both the performance and you are lovely."

She blushed at his words and smiled at him. "Thank you." She murmured softly before she moved to stand beside him. "They look so happy and their hearts are making such beautiful music. I wish you could hear it. Their union will surely last."

Gaara nodded. "It's true."

"Onchou!" Naruto exclaimed bounding forward and hugging her. "You did great!" he exclaimed.

"Thank you." She said with a smile as he released her. She stepped forward and gave Hinata a hug. "I couldn't have done this without you and Ino. Thank you."

The lavender eyed girl smiled. "I was happy to." She replied as she returned the embrace.

Naruto stood next to Gaara as the two girls talked about clothing and makeup. "I have to say, Onchou cleans up pretty well." The Uzamaki said with a smile. "Hinata told me that she was pretty nervous about wearing something so feminine. I don't see why, she looks good."

Gaara nodded his gaze trained on the young woman in question, mesmerized as the fabric around the violet haired girl's legs swayed as she moved the thigh high slit revealing glimpse of bronze skin from time to time. His eyes narrowed as a young man he vaguely recognized as a chunin a couple of years older than the Konoha 12 approached the violet haired girl and began talking to her his hand reaching forward to brush against hers.

"Too good it would seem." Naruto remarked smirking at the barely perceptible hardening of his friend's features as he observed the scene.

The Kazekage was torn as he watched the exchange. They had both agreed that keeping their relationship a secret from most of the shinobi world was the safest option for both them and Suna given the current circumstances. It allowed them the freedom to move about more freely and to protect each other better. However, in situations like these, he wanted to throw all of that away. He wanted to rush forward, take Onchou in his arms and kiss her breathless to show that man and every other man in the room whom she belonged to. She gently shrugged the man off only to be approached by another more aggressive man who pulled her onto the dance floor and quickly began to spin with her around the room.

"Sorry." He heard her voice whisper in his head through the soul link. His head jerked once in acknowledgement of her message as he crossed his arms over his chest glaring daggers at the man as he spun his lover across the dance floor.

"That's a scary face." Kankuro said as he moved to stand beside his brother. "Not that I blame you. That guy is either totally oblivious or has guts that put Naruto's to shame."

Gaara's gaze flickered to his brother briefly before going back to the dance floor his eyes glued to the violet haired girl as she did her best to keep up with her enthusiastic partner's pace. When the song finally ended, Onchou bowed politely to the young man and began to make her way back across the floor towards Gaara when she was tugged back again by another young man. The sand wielder felt his irritation grow with each passing minute as man after man moved in on his lover.

"Gaara, your sand is showing." Temari said with a little smirk as she moved to stand beside him.

He sighed and turned to her. "I can't help it." He muttered.

She chuckled. "Go get her." She encouraged. "The most important part is over and things are about to wrap up soon anyway."

His eyes widened. "Are you sure?" he asked. "This day is all about you."

The fan wielder smiled. "Exactly and what I want is for you to wipe that nasty look off your face and the only way that his happening is if you get your hands on that girl of yours which you can't do in public correct?"

Gaara blushed and glanced at Onchou who was nervously pushing away the hands of another enthusiastic suiter who was insisting on bringing her to the dance floor. He gritted his teeth and strode across the dance floor putting himself between the two.

"May I have this dance?" he asked as he extended his hand.

Onchou blinked and then nodded placing her slim bronze hand in his. He pulled her to the dance floor and they danced in a slow circle. "I thought you didn't dance." The violet haired teen said as they moved across the floor.

"Quiet." He replied simply pulling her closer. She nodded and gripped his hand tighter rubbing soothing circles into the skin on the back of it.

"Thank you." She murmured. "I wasn't sure how to react to all of their advances."

He sighed and nodded. "It's ok. This is the last song isn't it?"

Onchou nodded. "It is. Thanks for coming. I was saving this dance for you after all."

Gaara felt a little of his irritation flow out of him at her words and smiled down at her. "Thank you." He murmured as the song came to an end. They broke apart and turned their attention to the front of the hall where the announcement of the newlywed's departure was being given. He joined his brother at the head of the line wishing the couple well and glanced at Onchou who stood beside Ino and Hinata tossing flower petals into the air in celebration. Temari and Shikamaru smiled as the petals rained down on them until they reached the end of the line where Gaara, Kankruo and Shikamaru's parents stood.

"Well done my son." Shikaku said with a smile. "Welcome to the family Temari. We couldn't be more happy to have you."

"Thank you father." The couple said in unison bowing to the Nara head.

"Take good care of my sister." Kankuro said to Shikamaru as Gaara stepped forward to embrace Temari.

"Of course." The shadow wielder replied. "Thank you for entrusting her to me."

"Take care of yourself." Gaara said as he released her. "If you need anything, don't hesitate to ask. Visit anytime."

"Of course _little_ brother." Temari replied with a little wink. "Take care of yourself."

Kankruo stepped forward and hugged her tightly. "I'm so happy for you sister."

Temari hugged him back and tears streamed down her face. "I suppose this is goodbye for now."

Gaara stepped forward putting his arms around both his brother and sister uniting the sand siblings for a heartfelt embrace before he stepped back with Kankruo.

"Take care both of you." He said.

"Of course Lord Gaara." Shikamaru said bowing to him. "We'll visit Suna soon." He then turned to his wife. "Shall we?" he asked before he swept her up into his arms and vanished in a puff of smoke inciting a roar of cheering and whistles.

"Someone is impatient." Kankuro muttered.

Shikaku chuckled. "They've held out long enough." He slipped his arm around his wife's waist and pulled her close to him. "Shall we?" he asked smiling as he echoed his son's words before he pulled her towards the reception hall.

Kankuro smiled and then clapped Gaara on the shoulder. "Well brother, our duty here is done. Go ahead and get your girl."

The red head blushed. "What are you going to do brother?" he asked.

"I'm going to enjoy the sights and sounds of Konoha at night." The puppeteer replied with a wave of his hand. "We're heading back to Suna tomorrow, so if you want to enjoy some drama free time with your little song bird, I'd get to it."

The sand wielder rolled his eyes and turned towards the crowd scanning for a glimpse of violet hair. He frowned when he didn't see it and his eyes narrowed as he sensed her chakra a little ways away from the rest of the group accompanied by a chakra he didn't recognize.

"Help me Gaara." Came Onchou's voice in his head.

He quickly moved towards the two signatures and his eyes darkened as he observed a young shinobi who had obviously been drinking standing in front of Onchou with his hands on either side of her trapping her against the trunk of a large tree a few yards from the reception hall. The sand at his hip began to swirl as she pressed her palms against the chest of the young man.

"Please leave me alone. I'm waiting for someone." She said softly.

"Don't be like that." The man murmured his speech slurred. "Let me show you a good time."

"Onchou." Gaara said softly.

She turned at the sound of his voice and relief swept over her features. "Lord Gaara." She murmured.

The young man turned his eyes narrowing slightly at the Kazekage. "Lord Kazekage? She's just your body guard right? You wouldn't mind if I borrowed her for the evening would you?"

"I would actually." Gaara replied. "Step away from her."

"I won't hurt her. I just want to show her a good time." The young man insisted.

The sand wielder's brow twitched in irritation and assumed that the alcohol the man had consumed had made him stupid beyond reason to refuse his order. He extended his hand the sand already swirling there thickening and picking up speed. "I won't ask you again."

The young man laughed. "Alright, alright. You win, but first…" he leaned forward and pressed his lips to Onchou's.

The violet haired teen gasped in surprise and immediately tore her face from his even as Gaara saw red. He'd endured watching other men dance with and stare at his lover with lust in their eyes but this was too much. Onchou was his and he'd be damned if he'd let another man kiss her. He moved with lightning speed and slammed his fist into the shinobi's face sending him flying into the next tree over. The young man groaned and glanced up at Gaara who towered over him his with sand swirling around him. His hand twitched as his sand began to curl around the young man's neck.

"Gaara!" Onchou exclaimed leaping forward and wrapping her arms around his waist from behind. "Let's just go, please?"

His eyes flickered to hers burning with anger but softened slightly at the sight of unshed tears brimming in her eyes. He growled once in frustration and lifted her into his arms before they vanished in a swirling of sand.

As soon as Gaara's feet hit the floor of the room in the Nara house where Onchou was staying, he put her down and then crushed his lips to hers. His hands quickly pulled her hair free of the bun it was confined in and then raked through the violet colored tresses as he devoured her. He felt her hands fist in front of his robes and heard the little squeaks of surprise and grunts of pain as one of his hands moved to her neck gripping it tightly as the other slipped down to her waist pulling her tighter against him. He tore his mouth from hers and laid it on her neck nipping and licking at the skin until a dark purple mark appeared there. Her hands were tangled in his hair her breath coming out in little pants as she clung to him.

"Not enough." He hissed under his breath before pitching them both to the floor. A little squeak of surprise left his lover's lips but he didn't stop his lips latching onto her collar bone sucking and nipping the skin there. With one hand he held her wrists above her head while his other hand stroked the length of her body over the slippery fabric of the dress. He found the slit and nearly groaned when his hand griped her thigh and slid upwards heat seething in his blood as he neared the heat he desperately wanted.

"Gaara." Came Onchou's voice drawing him out of his jealousy induced rampage. His eye found hers and he was ashamed to see just the slight hint of fear in them though they mostly reflected concern.

"I'm so sorry for losing control like that." He murmured laying his forehead against hers.

She stroked his hair before she laid her hand against his face. "It's alright." She assured him. "It wasn't really your fault. Anyone would be understandably upset by what happened. I'm sorry I got in that situation at all. I just…" she took a deep breath to steady herself. "I don't want to do something like this just because emotions were running high, not like this anyway."

He shook his head as he moved so that he laid beside her on the floor. "Don't apologize. It wasn't your fault either." He stroked his hand down the length of her body and chuckled. "It's kind of strange, part of me wants you to dress like this all of the time because you look so beautiful but the larger part of me wants you to always wear your lose over robes so no one else can see."

Onchou blushed and curled against his chest her finger tips resting on his shoulders. "I'm so happy. We're finally alone." She murmured.

He nodded and held her close before they both sat down on her futon. "So what did you think of the wedding?" he asked.

"It was lovely." She sighed a gentle smile on her lips. "Simply lovely. I'm so happy for them."

Gaara nodded. "It was wasn't it?" he fingered a lock of her hair. "We'll begin the trek back to Suna tomorrow. Because of the assassination attempt on the way here, we'll be moving at close to top speed."

"I understand." The young woman replied.

He pressed a kiss to her forehead. "Stay by my side." He murmured. "Even if you have to hide in the shadows."

Onchou smiled and pressed a gentle kiss to jaw. "Always. I'll never leave your side."

 **Author's Notes: Sorry this is so late. Life, The Holidays and such. I hope you enjoy this chapter! Thanks for reading! Also the song is 'When I Look At You' by Miley Cyrus. It was hard finding a song that fit our favorite Lazy Brainiac and Desert Wildcat but I think this one fit well. Anyway, until next time!**


	6. Chapter 6

Onchou shuddered as she tossed caught in the throes of a terrible dream.

 _She was inside a dark cave, a terrifying looking statue situated in the middle of the space. Around her, figures dressed in black robes with red clouds stood atop the grotesque fingers of the demonic looking carving their hands held up in various signs as they conducted their jutsu. Floating in the middle of them was Gaara his back arched, his ringed eyes open wide, low moans and gasps slipping past his lips as the power inside him was drawn out and sucked into the statue. Her hands balled into fists and tears pricked at her eyes as she glared at the scene. Her jaw clenching painfully as she sensed his chakra and life force diminishing by the minute._

 _"Stop it!" she yelled her voice echoing off the walls. None of the figures even glanced at her as she rushed forward. "I said stop it!" she shouted again her heart breaking as the cracks in her lover's skin deepened. "You're killing him! Enough!" she shrieked leaping at one of the two figures that were solid. She growled in frustration when she passed right through the blonde haired man and turned pulling a kunai from her sleeve intent on stabbing him through the heart. Her stomach dropped when the man opened his eyes and lowered his hands, the last of the chakra slipping from Gaara's body. "Gaara!" she cried out as his body plummeted towards the ground hitting with a sickening thud. Without thinking about the consequences she rushed to the fallen Shinobi's side her heart thundering in her chest as she felt for a pulse, her blood running cold when she found none. "No…" she whimpered. "No!" she screamed. "Open your eyes Gaara! You can't be dead. Please!" she begged as tears slipped down her cheeks. "Gaara please…"_

 _"What are ya' cryin' for?" the blonde man said as he walked past her and sat on the body of her fallen love. "He's already dead yeah'?"_

 _Her eyes blazed her electric chakra cracking in the air as her fury flared. "Damn you." She hissed. "I'll never forgive you for this. Get off of him!" she snarled shoving him off and cradling the Kazekage in her arms. She laid her forehead against his, her sobs shaking his body. "Gaara. I'm begging you. Open your eyes." She whimpered. "Don't leave me alone!"_

 _"Onchou!" a voice called out cutting through her anguish. "Open your eyes Onchou!" he commanded as the world around them began to fade._

Her eyes snapped open and her vision was immediately filled with a pale face framed by red hair, soft blue green eyes studying her with concern. "Are you alright?" Gaara asked.

A sob bubbled up from her throat as she bolted upright and wrapped her arms around his neck burying her head in his shoulder. Her body shuddered as she tried to slow her breathing taking in his familiar earthy scent and the warmth of his body. "Thank goodness." She breathed tears sliding down her cheeks.

"What happened?" he asked shifting them so that she was sitting in his lap.

"A nightmare." She replied curling closer to him.

"Do you want to talk about it?" he asked.

She shook her head and gripped him tighter. "Not yet. Just hold me like this for a while."

He nodded and gently rubbed his hands in comforting circles on her back. Her heart still pounded out of control as she remembered that what she had seen had been more memory than dream. Remembered that the people she'd seen really were the mercenaries that had killed her beloved years before. Her teeth clenched at the thought and she held him even tighter her fingers feathering through his red locks and running over his neck confirming the cracks that had been there in her dream were gone.

After several moments of quiet, he broke the silence. "Onchou." Gaara said softly. "If you hold me much tighter, I won't be able to breathe."

She jumped and blushed. "Sorry." She murmured forcing her arms to relax a little.

"I've never seen you like this before." He said threading his fingers through her sweat dampened hair. "What did you dream about that frightened you this much?"

She hesitantly raised her head and studied his face with her eyes before tracing it gently with her finger tips, over the places where deep cracks had existed in her mind just minutes before. "I…" she took a deep breath and closed her eyes as her throat constricted around the words. "You… You were dead." She finally choked out. "I.. I couldn't do anything to stop it."

Her eyes opened as warm, calloused fingers wiped the tears from her face. "I'm alive." He assured her, his pale eyes soft. "I'm right here."

She nodded and leaned forward pressing her lips gently against his. He returned the pressure and she felt some of her tension melting away as he gently laid her back against the futon hovering over her, his lips moving gently against hers. After several moments, he sat up and brushed the hair from her face.

"See? There's nothing to fear." He assured her. "Try to get some sleep, we still have a few hours before it's time to return to Suna." He said moving to stand.

"Wait." She protested gripping the hem of his shirt. "Don't go." She looked down and blushed. "Please stay with me." It was so irritating. Since when was she afraid of being alone?

He studied her for a moment before crawling over her and slipping into the futon behind her wrapping his arms around her waist. "As you wish." He murmured softly.

She sighed and covered his hands with her own as she shifted closer to him. Her heart pounded as she laid in his embrace, thankful that he was alive and well. Her mind wandered and she found herself remembering a scene she'd seen in his memories. It was during the Fourth Shinobi War. He had been appointed commander of the allied forces and was moving forward to take on the past Kage. His father had confronted him on the battlefield. Her mouth turned up into a little smirk as she remembered part of their conversation a little giggle escaping her lips.

"What is it?" Gaara asked seemingly intrigued by the sound.

"Sorry. I was just thinking about something I saw in your memories." She explained.

"What exactly?" he probed.

"When you fought your father during the war and he was so shocked to find out that you had friends." She replied turning towards her lover. "When he said, 'Wait, you're telling me that _you_ have _friends_!?' I honestly thought 'Rude! Seriously. What a jerk!'" she smiled and stroked his face. "Then I was thinking about what he'd say if he knew you had a lover today."

Gaara's lips turned up into a little smile his eyes closing as he chuckled softly. "I doubt he'd believe it." He replied bumping his forehead against hers. "There are moments that I have trouble believing it myself. How could someone as beautiful and kind as you love someone with hands as tainted as mine?"

Onchou's eyes softened as she reached for his hands and brought them to her lips caressing the calloused knuckles, working her way to the tips and pressing a kiss to each palms. "These hands of yours are _not_ tainted." She said bringing one up to cup her cheek as she looked into his eyes. "They're strong yet gentle. Mine are far more stained than yours."

Her heart skipped a beat as she saw warmth, tenderness, and a spark of heat in his pale blue green eyes as he moved his hands to thread through her hair. "Not true." He breathed as he gently pulled her head back, leaned forward and captured her lips with his own.

Onchou sighed as she wrapped her arms around his neck shifting when he nudged her so that she was on her back his mouth moving softly against hers. She responded eagerly her hands running over his back as she reassured herself that he was alive and with her. His tongue touched her lips requesting entrance and she granted it a delicious shiver running down her spine when he slid his hand down her back to her hip encouraging her to arch against him. Her leg shifted at the motion and he ran his hand along her newly exposed, smooth skin, his breath hitching at the contact. His mouth left hers to explore her neck tasting and nipping at the column of flesh.

She felt heat building in her core as his mouth worked its way over her collar bone, his body pressing against hers while his fingers glided over the sensitive skin on the back of her knee.

"Gaara." She breathed arching against him her hands sliding into his hair. "I love you. I love you so much."

He raised his head and looked down at her his eyes filled with emotion as he stroked his fingers through her hair. "Thank you. Those words mean more to me than you will ever know." He admitted. He leaned down and pressed his lips to her forehead. "As much as I'd like to continue, we really should rest." He said shifting off of her.

Onchou sighed and turned towards him. "I understand." She said.

"There is also another reason." He said as she snuggled against his chest.

"Oh? What's that?" she asked.

"I've decided that I want the first time I make love to you to be in my bed." He whispered in her ear. Her eyes widened and her core throbbed as she blushed a shiver running through her body. He smirked at her reaction a low chuckle leaving his lips. "Good night Onchou." He said pressing a kiss to her cheek.

"Yeah. Goodnight Gaara." She said closing her eyes and finally receiving the gift of a dreamless sleep.

#$#

Gaara was awoken the next morning by the pleasant, yet unfamiliar, sensation of warmth against his body coupled with the frantic voice of his brother and two attendants.

"Gaara! Where are you!?" the eldest of the sand brothers exclaimed.

The redhead's eyes fluttered open and then widened as he found his vision filled mostly with a mass of violet hair his arms instinctively shifting only to find them wrapped around the sleeping form of the woman in front of him. Heat rose to his cheeks as he realized that in the night their legs had become entwined and that the neckline of her shirt had shifted as leaving more of her exposed as it slipped off her shoulder.

"Gaara!" Kankuro exclaimed again throwing open the door to the bedroom his face unpainted, sweat beading on his forehead.

The Kazekage raise himself up on his elbow to meet his brother's eyes. The puppet master froze his eyes widening as he studied the scene. Onchou moaned softly and shifted at the noise as well sitting up and rubbing her eyes.

"Is it morning already?" she murmured softly.

Kankuro's eyes widened as he looked at her rumpled appearance and Gaara could tell from the look in his brother's eyes that he was getting the wrong idea. With a sigh he sat up completely and raked his fingers through his hair.

"Is there something you needed brother?" he said softly.

The sand shinobi blinked and then shook his head. "Uh, yeah. We were just wondering where you went." He said quickly. "We still have a couple of hours before we have to depart so I can leave you two to-"

Gaara's eyes narrowed slightly cutting his brother off. "It's fine. We're already awake. Let's just get ready to leave now." He said standing up. He moved towards the door reaching down to stroke Onchou's face affectionately as he walked past her. "I'll see you in a few minutes." He assured her.

"Yeah. Ok." She replied with a sleepy smile that somehow made his throat tight and his mouth water. Before he could do the things Kankuro suspected them of doing, he left the room and returned to his own quickly and quietly assuring his attendants that he was unharmed. Then he quickly pulled his shirt over his head and replaced it with a fresh one, donning his signature rust colored clothing.

"So, you snuck into Onchou's room last night?" Kankuro said with a smirk as he too went to work changing his clothes.

Gaara sighed as he picked up his gourd of sand and attached it to his hip. "You make it sound so indecent." He muttered. "She had a terrible nightmare last night. I went to check on her and she asked me to stay. I'd only intended to stay until she fell asleep but somehow I fell asleep too."

The older brother's eyes widened before he barked a loud laugh making the Kazekage blush. "That's the cutest thing I've ever heard!" Kankuro laughed. "And here I was thinking you'd climbed the ladder to adulthood."

Gaara sighed and moved out of the room nearly running into Onchou as he did so.

"Opps! Sorry." She said quickly taking a step back.

"It's fine." He assured her extending a hand to steady her. "Did you get enough sleep? As far as I know, the situation regarding the council is still the same so we'll be relying on your hearing." He said tucking a section of hair behind one of her pointed ears.

She nodded and smiled. "I'll be just fine." She assured him. He was a little surprised when she blushed and stepped towards him lowering her head so that it bumped against his chest. "Thank you for last night." She said softly.

He smiled gently and circled one arm around her shoulder resting his hand on the back of her head, the other hand grabbed hers lacing their fingers together. He bowed his head and pressed a kiss to her hair that was pulled back into a half pony tail. "It was my pleasure." He assured her.

"What a pretty picture that makes." Yoshino the matriarch of the family said as she observed the pair from the end of the hallway.

They jumped apart blushing and she smiled at them. "No need to be embarrassed." She assured them. "I thought I sensed something between you. It turns out I was right. Come to breakfast. I heard you want to head out a little ahead of schedule."

Gaara nodded and walked towards her with Onchou close behind. They took seats near one another and after thanking their host, began to eat. Within an hour they had finished, thanked their hosts and were now at the gates of The Leaf Village, a small knot of people including their friends and the Hokage around them.

"Are you sure you don't want a team of our ninja to escort you to the boarder?" Kakashi asked the group of sand shinobi.

"We'll be fine." Gaara assured the Hokage. "Thank you for everything."

"Come back and visit again soon!" Naruto said waving enthusiastically.

"We will." Kankuro assured them. "We'll be here for the chunin exams in a few months remember?"

"Let us go." Gaara said giving his first and most trusted friend a smile before giving the signal to move out.

He watched as the markings on Onchou's ears glowed brilliant silver as they entered the tree tops. It was still so fascinating even after seeing the process several times.

"They're such a lively bunch of people." She commented after a few minutes.

"Indeed." Gaara agreed. "Can you hear them from here?" She smirked and nodded before her cheeks turned pink.

"Are they discussing anything interesting?" Kankuro asked a knowing gleam in his eye.

The violet haired girl coughed. "They're placing bets."

"On what?" the puppeteer asked cocking a brow his lips curling into a smirk.

"It doesn't matter." The girl replied quickly turning an even deeper shade of pink.

"Let's rest here for the night." Gaara said as they landed in a small village in the land of fire. "It's not on the direct course to Suna and only the top officials know our planned route home. We should be safe here."

"Good. I'm beat." Kankuro admitted.

The sand wielder nodded and then turned to Onchou who stood beside him. He could sense through her posture that she was tired as well though she was doing her best to hide it. "Are you feeling alright?" he asked.

She turned and nodded. "I'm fine." She assured him. "I'll keep my ears going until we get to the Inn." She assured him.

"You don't need to push yourself so hard." He said gently reaching out to clasp her hand.

She shook her head. "That's not true. Temari and Naruto are both counting on me to get you home safely. Ryuu is waiting for me too, there's no way I can let them down by being lazy of all things."

Kankuro chuckled. "You've lost this round brother." He said with a smirk.

Gaara sighed as they entered a small but cozy looking Inn. The old man at the counter smiled at the shinobi as they entered the establishment and quickly studied each of them his eyes lingering on Onchou for a few more moments than the Kazekage thought was necessary.

"Travelers from The Land of Wind." He said studying their attire. "Ninja even, what brings you to The Land of Fire?"

Gaara tensed for a moment a little wary of the situation and was surprised when Onchou quickly spoke up.

"We just went to my boyfriend's sister's wedding!" She said wrapping her arm around Gaara and leaning against him a bubbly sounding giggle falling from her lips. "Her new husband is actually one of the famous Konaha 12 from the Hidden Leaf. She was a little worried about us returning home safely so her hubby asked these sand ninja to escort us to our village." She explained without skipping a beat.

'What are you thinking?' Gaara hissed through the soul link. 'Don't give away so much personal information!'

'Just wait.' She assured him.

The man's eyes widened. "The Konaha 12 huh?" he grinned at Gaara as he pushed a key towards him. "Your sister's a lucky lady. Those kids are highly sought after celebrities in these parts."

Gaara blinked in surprise and nodded. "Yes. Her husband is a wonderful man."

"Alright then. You kids have a good night. My wife will bring around dinner in about an hour or so. Enjoy your stay!" he said pointing to their room on a map.

"Thank you so much!" Onchou said with a smile.

"No problem little lady." The man replied with a grin. "Why don't you try your luck with one of those war hero's?" he asked with a waggle of his brows.

Gaara tensed but Onchou merely laughed. "No thanks. They're great and all but I have a thing for Sand shinobi instead." She said with a wink.

The man blinked his eyes studying Gaara for a moment before he laughed as well. "Fair enough." He said with a grin.

The group made their way down the hall to a large room and stepped inside. Once the door was closed Gaara's gaze narrowed as he studied Onchou. "What was that all about?" he demanded.

The violet haired girl sighed. "Give me two minutes." She replied her eyes drifting closed. The air around her suddenly twitched her silver tinged chakra becoming visible as the tattoos on her ears suddenly turned brilliant gold. It stayed that way for a minute and a half minute before she sighed the tattoos shifting back to silver, and then black as her chakra retracted and she fell to her knees.

"Onchou! What's wrong?" Gaara exclaimed reaching out to steady her with his arms.

"Nothing. Nothing at all." She replied. "There aren't any enemies within fifty square miles of this place that I can hear."

"What did I say about pushing yourself?" The Kazekage said with a sigh.

"It's for my own peace of mind." She assured him. "Anyway, when we first walked in, that guy didn't like you guys." She explained. "Your attire clearly screams outsider and although the village hidden in the Leaves has a good relationship with the village hidden in the Sand, The lands of Wind and Fire themselves don't trust each other much. So, by bringing up the wedding, which wasn't a lie because lies are hard to remember later, it led to the impression that we have nothing to hide since we were so open with him up front. Additionally, Naruto and his core group of friends are well known and respected in these parts. I was passing through The Land of Fire on my way to The Land of Wind looking for Suna after all. That's why I met Naruto and the others in the first place. I know just how much weight their positions carry. Even though names weren't mentioned I'm sure word has spread that the war heroes are beginning to marry and move on with their lives post war. That automatically earned us not only brownie points from the man, but it gave us a measure of protection. No common person in this land would knowingly touch a friend of that elite group of ninja." She took a deep breath and raked a hand through her hair. "Finally, mentioning that I have a thing for Sand ninja, also did two things. It proved to him I was loyal and alerted him to the fact that though you weren't marked as blatantly as the others that you were also a sand shinobi which led him to assume that all of us are likely ninja. That means more protection for us and him so even if he was suspicious in the beginning, he isn't now."

Gaara studied her with his eyes wide. She was incredible. To quickly analyze the situation and react in such a way that made it easier on both parties was truly impressive.

"Damn." Kankuro muttered. "That brain of yours is scary."

"Not as scary as Shikimaru's." Yaoki remarked as he laid out the bags in the large room.

"That man's brain is something else." Gaara admitted sitting down at the table. He glanced over at Onchou who was seated near the window her eyes focused on the darkening sky.

"Is anything wrong?" he asked her.

She shook her head quickly. "Not at all. Just thinking." She replied.

Kankuro stretched and glanced out the window as well. "So what do you guys think Temari and Shikimaru are up to right now?" he asked. "I bet all sorts of fun things with that big brain of his and her stamina."

Gaara and Onchou both turned a shade of scarlet while Yaoki and Korobi gaped at the puppet master.

"Lord Kankuro!" Korobi gasped. "What are you saying?"

Gaara cleared his throat and touched the bridge of his nose. "Don't encourage him." He muttered as his older brother laughed heartily.

The meal was delivered not long after everyone had bathed and the group sat together chatting pleasantly. The Kazekage however, noticed that Onchou wasn't as lively as he expected her to be and reached out touching her gently on the hand. "What's wrong?" he asked.

"I'm not sure." She admitted. 'I don't want to talk about it right here and now.' She said through the soul link.

He nodded. 'Shall we meet up later and talk?'

She nodded. 'Tonight at midnight?' she suggested.

He nodded again and they turned their attention back to Kankuro who was telling a story about his battle with Sasori and Deidera during the war.

"Was Deidera really that childish?" Onchou asked as he finished telling them about the reanimated man's escaped attempt that was foiled by one of his old friends from the Hidden Stone village.

Kankuro snorted and nodded. "Oh yeah. Right up until the end. He scared the crap out of me." He admitted.

"How?" Yaoki asked.

"You see, when the reanimation jutsu was undone, all those who had been reanimated started glowing when their souls and host bodies began to separate." The painted shinobi explained. "Deidera had been running his mouth, threatening to blow us all up moments before it happened so it freaked me out initially. Then he yelled 'Bang' super loud and I totally jumped." He shook his head. "That jerk… You know, if he wasn't so obsessed with that 'art' of his and hadn't done what he did with Gaara, I probably wouldn't have minded the guy. He was actually kind of fun to be around. He ran his mouth a lot but he was really pretty fun to tease." He admitted.

Gaara nodded and noticed how Onchou tensed at the mention of his capture years before. He had a sinking suspicion that the dream that had frightened her so much the night before probably had something to do with that incident.

"Anyway, we should probably head to bed." He said stretching. "Morning will be here before we know it."

The group nodded and settled into their futons for the night. Kankuro laid next to Gaara closer to the door with Korobi on his opposite side. Yaoki laid opposite the Kazekage near the window. Onchou laid on the other side of the room separated from the line of men by the table.

Once the others were sound asleep, Gaara watched the time until the clock struck midnight. He shifted a little in his futon, letting Onchou know he was still awake and listened as she sat up. 'I'll be on the roof.' She said softly through their link as she stood up and slipped out the door, sliding it closed behind her but leaving it open a crack to make it easier for him. He waited for a few moments to make sure he didn't disturb his companions before rising himself and slipping out the door. He padded to the slightly opened window and then deciding it was worth the exerted chakra willed himself to become sand and drifted out the door rematerializing behind the woman who stood on the roof top. He studied her for several moments her face lifted towards the waning moon, her violet hair loose and dancing in the night wind. Her yukata was white contrasting against her bronze skin and for a moment she looked like an otherworldly being that would vanish in the blink of an eye. Unsettled by the thought, Gaara stepped forward and wrapped his arms around her pulling her back against his chest.

She jumped and glanced back at him before laying her arms over his. "You startled me." She admitted. "You must have used that sand transportation technique of yours."

"Indeed." He replied. "Now, what's been bothering you?"

Onchou took a deep breath and leaned her head against him. "I suppose I'm just a bit confused." She admitted.

"Confused about what?" he asked slipping her hair over one shoulder so that it didn't tickle his face.

"I understand that both you and Kakashi are Kage. I understand that Kage are carefully selected based on numerous factors including experience, power, influence and their ability to protect and lead. I also understand that the councils in each village exist to advise the Kage as well as to keep them from abusing their authority." She said.

"All of that is true." He confirmed. "So what are you confused about?"

"If you were selected based on that criteria, why were there so many attempts on your life ordered by the old council even after you were named Kazekage?" she asked her body tensing in his arms. "If they didn't want you to be Kazekage, why did they put you in that position? Why didn't they just appoint someone else and leave you alone?" she shook the anger and hurt evident in her posture. "Why did they hurt you then and still try to hurt you now? I don't understand. I doesn't seem like that's how it works in The Leaf Village at all."

Gaara sighed and turned his lover in his arms and brushed the tears from her face with gentle finger tips. "Suna, for a long time has been obsessed with having the most powerful Kage. Even my father was the target of many assassination attempts before and after becoming Kazekage. The people and the council seemed to feel that if their leader could be killed by their own people, that they wouldn't be able to effectively protect the village from an outside attack."

Onchou's nose wrinkled as she processed his explanation. "That's… a very warped way of thinking." She said clearly still bothered.

"I don't disagree." He replied. "Times are changing. Suna is learning to trust not only me, but those who are allied with us as well." The violet haired girl nodded though her brow was still wrinkled. "Is there anything else wrong?" he asked.

"It's just…" she took a deep breath and took a step away from him. "Gaara, I think I know where I want to be. In Suna I mean." She said.

"Oh? Where is that?" He asked. He was anxious, yet excited to hear her decision. She'd obviously given the matter a lot of thought.

She took a deep breath and knelt in front of him startling him. "Lord Kazekage, I'd like to humbly offer you my services as your personal body guard and advisor."

Gaara's eyes widened. "What are you suggesting?" he asked her a bit unsure of what she truly meant.

"There is no doubt in my mind that you are the man that is meant to lead the people of Suna and protect The Land of Wind. As Kazekage, you helped unite the shinobi world and led the fight against Madara and his forces during the Fourth Great Ninja War. You are a beacon of light and hope in this remarkably peaceful time. That being said, there will come times where dangerous and unpleasant situations will arise. Situations that will need a powerful, firm hand to settle but that could tarnish the hard earned reputation you have spent the past several years building. Situations like what happened with Takuma." She glanced up at him her eyes shining with passion, devotion, love, and determination. "When those situations arise, I will take care of them for you. Let me be an extension of your will working behind the scenes and abroad to protect both you and the village. The Kazekage's Kage."

His blue green eyes stared at the woman kneeling before him as his heart pounded in his chest. He'd heard that in The Leaf Village, Lady Tsunade and Master Jariya had worked in a similar way. She served as the Hokage while he slipped in and out of the shadows, doing the dirty work as it were on her orders. He'd always been worried that one day he'd be forced to take action that could potentially damage the reputation he'd worked so hard to build. He hadn't even been able to protect Onchou properly because of his desire to protect his position once. He'd also wondered what would happen if a situation arose that required someone with his level of power outside the village he was sworn to protect like the Leaf's situation with Pain. The woman kneeling before him was the only one from his own village that had managed to beat him in a sparring match. He'd seen the extent of her power when she'd fought during the conflict with Takuma. Even after knowing her for less than two hours they'd been able to combine their powers in battle to protect the people of Suna. She was linked to the village by blood but not well known inside nor outside it, she wouldn't arouse much if any suspicion while taking outside missions. If there was anyone in the village qualified for such a role, it was her. Yet it was such a dangerous position to undertake. How could he let the woman he loved do such a thing? His train of thought was interrupted by the warmth of her hands clasping his.

"Gaara, you once told me that you wanted me by your side, even if I had to remain in the shadows. We're already bound by the soul link jutsu. Receiving your orders and supplying you with information would be as simple as opening the mental link between us. " She lowered her head once more. "You've saved me and those precious to me more times than I can count. My life and my heart both belong to you. All I want now is to protect and serve you, Ryuu, and the village we all live in and love." She raised her head and gazed into his eyes. "It is the duty of the Queen to protect the King is it not?"

The sand wielder's eyes softened at that. The words that she seemed to live by. "How can I refuse when you say it like that." He murmured softly. "Even so, are you sure about this? It will take a great deal of work and dedication on your part. You'll likely have to join the ANBU and live a life of secrecy."

She nodded. "I am more than willing to make those sacrifices if I am able to be of use to you." She murmured.

Gaara reached out and touched the top of her head. "So be it then. I will do all in my power to assist you as you walk the path you have chosen for yourself."

Onchou smiled and rose to her feet and wrapped her arms around him. "Thank you Gaara." She whispered.

"You're welcome." He replied holding her close. After a moment he moved away slightly and pressed his lips to hers. It was a sweet kiss full of feeling. He knew that the road before her was dangerous but he also trusted her to triumph in spite of that. After a few moments, they broke apart. "Come, let's go back inside. We'll inform the others of this decision tomorrow."

She nodded and they both walked to the edge of the roof. Onchou lowered herself using her hands, slid the window open with her foot and swung inside tumbling soundlessly to the floor and then rising to her feet. Gaara simply turned himself to sand and accomplished the same feat.

The violet haired girl shook her head. 'You're so smooth it's almost annoying.' She confessed through their soul link.

He merely smirked in response as the pair of them walked back to their room securing the door behind them. Onchou suddenly stopped and closed her eyes. Her hair twitched as her tattoos changed from black, to silver, to gold. Her brow furrowed in concentration.

"What are you doing?" Gaara whispered.

"Shh!" she replied. Sweat beaded on her forehead as her brow knit together. Her eyes suddenly snapped open. "Everybody up!" she shouted.

"What is it?" Gaara demanded.

"A group of four enemy ninja are approaching from the east." She explained grabbing her bag and untying her yukata letting it fall at her feet.

Gaara's eyes widened at the sight of her clad in nothing but a pair of hip hugging, silver panties with lace trim. His mouth watered at the sight a bolt of heat going straight to his groin as he took in her sculpted form and seemingly endless legs. Several scars crisscrossed her torso which intrigued him but his eyes were natural drawn to her supple breasts his hands almost aching to reach out and touch them. His brother and two additional guards began to stir shaking him free of his lust induced haze. Thinking quickly, he used his sand to create a barrier around the girl.

"What are you doing Gaara?" she demanded.

"Just get your clothes on." He muttered.

She complied and called out when she was dressed so he could drop the sand barrier as Kankuro, Yaoki and Korobi jumped to their feet.

"The enemy is coming? Who sent them?" Kankuro demanded as sand swirled back into Gaara's gourd.

Onchou's eyes closed for a moment. "No name." she replied a little smirk touching her lips. "Those vultures are getting smarter."

Gaara glanced at the amethyst eyed girl noting the change in her way of speaking and demeanor. He'd noticed before but she really was like a different person when she was in battle mode.

"They're moving in from the east. About fifteen miles and closing in quickly." she turned to Gaara as she pulled her hair back into a ponytail. "What's our plan? Do you want us to eliminate, capture, or avoid?"

Gaara thought for a moment. "If we capture them, do you think they'd be able to lead us to the ones that hired them?"

"Debatable." Kankuro replied. "If Onchou's ears couldn't pick up a client name they're probably forking out a lot of money. They could have also used a genjutsu on them as well."

"It's your call Gaara." Yaoki said. "We should move quickly though."

"We have mostly mid and long range fighters here." Onchou reminded him. "I'm the only expert in close range combat here." She said strapping her sword to her back.

"True. Engaging them within The Land of Fire's boarders could have negative political consequences as well." Gaara agreed. "Let us avoid them for now and make haste to Suna. Send a messages to The Sand and Leaf as well."

"Right away." Korobi said pulling a pair of carrier pigeons from his pack.

As soon as the birds left with their messages, the shinobi took to the roof tops and then the trees heading at breakneck speed towards The Land of Wind in a protective diamond formation with Gaara in the middle.

The Kazekage studied the girl to his right as her ears glowed in the darkness her eyes darting from side to side as she worked to manage the additional information coming from her ears and eyes.

"Have you learned anything new?" Kankuro asked the girl.

She nodded. "Three of them are water users and one is an earth user." Her brow furrowed. "From what I've been able to catch of their conversations, they plan to trap Gaara with an earth style jutsu and then bombard him with water attacks."

"That's actually a pretty good strategy." The puppeteer noted with a frown on his face.

Onchou nodded. "Yes it is." She frowned. "They're quite fast. Faster than we are. Even with our head start, I'm not sure how long we can maintain our lead on them."

The group of ninja moved quickly and quietly through the trees for several more hours when Onchou's eyes lit up just as the sun began to rise. "What are you thinking?" Gaara asked sensing her excitement leaking through their link.

"I think we should split up." She replied.

"Split up? How does that make any sense?" Kankuro asked.

"We can't outrun them for much longer. I'm not sure how they're doing it, but they're just moving too fast for us to stay ahead of them. Also, like Gaara said, we don't want cause a commotion here in The Land of Fire or The Land of Rivers." She explained. Her gaze turned to the Kazekage. "How quickly could you return Suna using that sand transportation jutsu of yours?"

"Just a few short hours." He replied. "Though it would use a fair amount of chakra to do so." He admitted.

Her brow furrowed once again. "Hmm. We don't want to leave you vulnerable like that, but we need to get your out of harm's way…." She looked over at him again. "How do you feel about riding a dragon?"

"Are you kidding me!?" Kankuro exclaimed. "Aren't we trying to be inconspicuous here!?"

"We'd only ride them to The Land of Wind." She explained. "Once there, Gaara, Korobi, and Yaoki can immediately go to the village at top speed, while you and I hang back and move at a more normal speed. Between your puppets and my genutsu we'd easily be able to create the illusion that all of us are still together especially since the old counsel doesn't know that I'm actually a strong sensory type shinobi. Then we can either lure them into traps and apprehend them or battle it out and eliminate them completely. Since we'll be our jurisdiction by then there won't be any political backlash regardless of the outcome."

"It's a good plan." Gaara confessed.

"Yeah it is." Kankuro admitted. "Alright then. Should we stop so you can summon them?"

"No, but we'll want to head to the treetops." She replied changing her direction as she began to form seals with her hands. She leapt above the treetops and bit her thumb. "Summoning jutsu!" she exclaimed.

A bright yellow dragon with blue lightning bolt patterns running down their sides appeared under her feet and an emerald dragon with bright blue eyes appeared next to her.

"Electra, Erde, it's good to see you." She said rubbing the two dragon's heads.

"It's a pleasure to be in your presence again Lady Onchou." Erde rumbled.

"Miss Onchou! I'm glad to see you doing so well. I was worried when we left you before after that disaster with Takuma." Electra replied.

"I know this isn't the first time I've seen it, but I'm still having a hard time believing it." Kankuro admitted from where he stood next to Gaara atop the trees.

"Those are seriously scary." Yaoki confessed.

"Come on up!" Onchou called down to them. "Electra is a little smaller so I'll have one of you ride with us and the rest can ride with Erde."

"I'll take the green one." Kankuro said jumping up onto the emerald dragon's head. "Get up there lover boy." He said motioning to the yellow dragon.

Gaara sighed and leapt up to land on the dragon's back behind Onchou. He slipped caught off guard by the smoothness of the scales and she reached out and caught his hand. "Sorry, I should have warned you about that. Erde's scales are rougher so getting your footings is pretty easy. Electra here has the smoothest scales of any dragon."

"Yes I do." The dragon replied a little rumble like a purr vibrating her body.

"As you can see, she's very proud." The violet haired girl said with a smile. "Alright. So come here Erde." She called out to the green dragon. "I'll explain the plan quickly. I need you both to take us to The Land of Wind as quickly as possible. Try to stay out of sight too." She glanced around. "It looks like there are plenty of clouds out today so it shouldn't be too much of a challenge."

"As you wish my lady." Erde rumbled. "Who are these humans?"

"Right. That's Kankuro, Karobi, and Yaoki." She said as they nodded in turn. "This is Gaara." She said motioning to the man behind her. Electra hissed and Erde growled at the mention of the Kazekage's name. "Calm down you two. I already explained once before that he didn't abandon me. Everything is fine now."

Erde grumbled. "If you say so."

Electra sighed as well. "Big brother is right. So shall we get going?"

"Yes. Quickly." Onchou said. "Oh, you guys should probably sit down." She called out to her companions. "They're the two fastest flyers I have."

"Don't tell Shadow about that." Electra giggled as Gaara sat down on her back. "Shall we race big brother?" she challenged gliding closer to Erde.

"We're trying to be sneaky here." Onchou reminded them.

"We know." Electra said with a sigh. "Let's go then." She said quickly weaving signs along with her brother.

"What are they doing?" Gaara asked.

"Just wait a second." Onchou replied tugging the sleeves of her shirt down to cover her more fully.

"Dragon Art. Cloud Cover Jutsu." The dragons said simultaneously. They were both suddenly enveloped in a thick mist.

Gaara's eyes widened and he nearly jumped when Onchou reached out and grabbed his hands wrapping them securely around her waist.

"It's a bit disorienting at first and she's slippery. Just hang on to me." She said. "Are you guys alright?" she called out in the direction where Erde had vanished.

"Yeah! A little freaked out but we'll deal with it!" Kankuro answered.

"Sorry about that." Onchou replied. "Hang on to the ridges on his back. It helps. Let's go guys!"

"As you wish My Lady." The dragons answered before they suddenly launched forward.

Gaara chanced a glance over the side and barely made out the land through the mist as they soared over the trees. He wished that the mist was gone so he could see properly but understood why it was there. "So we simply look like a fast moving cloud to the average person I assume?" he asked tucking Onchou's pony tail between his shoulder and hers shifting forward so he could keep it pinned there. Her hair was lovely, but it was an annoyance when it was constantly whipping him in the face.

'Yes' Onchou answered through the soul link. 'Unless a sensory type ninja is actively searching the skies, we shouldn't be detected.'

'This plan of yours is a bit risky.' He mused.

'This coming from the man that allowed his powerful, yet incredibly unpredictable friend who would bring an end to the world as we know it, fight in a war that was being waged to protect him.' She replied in a tone that heavily suggested she was probably cocking one of her violet brows at him.

'That was not my fault' he argued. 'I wasn't happy to see him there but Lady Tsunade's authority over him trumped mine. Additionally he ended up saving the world.' He sighed. 'You try to keep Naruto out of fight he feels personally responsible for.'

'I don't think there's a person alive that can do that.' She admitted.

'So why are you arguing with me?' he questioned.

'Because even though my plan is risky for everyone else, it keeps you safe by placing you furthest from any conflict.' She replied.

'I've been fighting my entire life.' He reminded her.

'Yes but you are the Kazekage. There's no reason for you to fight this fight when there are people here to fight it for you. Besides, they're after you. You are not Naruto, you don't get to serve yourself up on a silver platter to the enemy, taunt them, and nearly get killed for it before coming back basically from the dead and save the world. He was born under the star of the hero and seems to be the reincarnation of an old, powerful being. You are not.' She leaned back against him and nuzzled his cheek. 'You were born under the star of the ruler. Your role is to lead which means sometimes you have to be protected.' Her lips brushed the corner of his eye. 'Please let us protect you.'

He sighed and pulled her as close as he could given the circumstances. 'Only if you promise to return safe and sound.' He replied skimming his nose lightly across the nape of her neck.

'Yes. I promise. I will always come back to you.' She replied. 'Rest now. Electra and my ears will alert us to any danger.'

Gaara reluctantly complied leaning forward and resting his head on her shoulder. Within moments he was sleeping, dreaming of riding chakra boards across the desert sand with Onchou laughing by his side.


End file.
